Saving Kyoshi
by TyLeeChan
Summary: As the new Kyoshi Warrior, Ty Lee has no problem making friends, except Nikumu, a mean-spirited girl who seems to hate the pink acrobat. When oddities start happening around the island, Ty Lee suspects Nikumu. But what'll happen when Sokka visits Kyoshi?
1. Bonding

**Hey, Mitsuki-chan is her and here is the start of my brand new Ty Lee adventure!! It is all about Ty Lee when she is part of the Kyoshi Warriors!! YAY ME!! This is Sozin's Comet canon, and full of AWESEOMENESS!! (soree Kumi-sama for using your word). I think that this will test your brain power as you try to figure out several mysteries!! AND TY LEE IS IN IT!! I took a picture of all 5 unnamed Kyoshi Warriors and named them accordingly. I also gave them personalites based on either events with them in the show or their appearance. Their personalities aren't fully recognized in this chapter because this is more of a prolougue than anything. Well enjoy and R&R**

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"Hey you!"

The voice rang out in the prison yard, causing many heads to turn. It was full of anger and contempt. Several of the prisoner's spirits rose. Perhaps there was going to be another riot! Maybe then they could escape just like those other prisoners did awhile back. The voice was feminine. Even better. A cat-fight.

"You over there!"

It was louder this time, bringing more attention to itself. The guards had also heard it, but they continued to stand in their usual fashion. A riot or even a fight would make their job all the more interesting. They also liked to bet on who they thought was going to win.

"Don't ignore me! I know you heard!"

Two girls sat over on a makeshift bench, taking in the outside world while they could. One of them had jet black hair, and was obviously ignoring her friend that was sitting next to her. Instead, she was staring at the furious girl that was marching in her direction. Her friend had brown hair, and was stretching her legs. She was also talking, completely unaware. That only made her more surprised when two hands grabbed the collar of her shirt and pulled her up.

"You! Listen to me!!" The girl screamed in the brunette's face as she lifted her higher off the ground. The younger girl's eyes were already filled with tears, her face white with fear. She knew she could take this girl down, but hadn't there already been enough fighting? A crowd had gathered around them, anxious to see a fight. Some had even started chanting already.

Her friend got up from the bench, a look of fury plastered on her face.

"Let Ty Lee go." She growled, gesturing to the crying girl in the air. The other girl didn't respond, didn't even hesitate at the tears in the victim's eyes. She drew Ty Lee closer to her.

"This is for what you did…" She snarled, tightening her grip on the prison outfit. Her eyes were full of hate. Ty Lee flinched. She knew this girl was going to hurt her.

"Nikumu!" A voice came from the other side of the crowd, "Nikumu, put her down!"

The girl, Nikumu, stopped, her body stiffening at the sound of her name being called. She grimaced at the command but slowly lowered the young girl to the ground. Ty Lee breathed in as her feet hit the dirt and the hands released her shirt. The color slowly returned to her face, and she watched as Nikumu stepped back warily.

Mai ran over to her and immediately hugged her, letting Ty Lee cry on her shoulder. The betrayal had been hard enough on the young girl. Why did _she_ have to make it worse? Mai glared at Nikumu, to which she got a glare back. This girl had an attitude, and Mai wanted to slap that glare right off her face.

"Nikumu! What have we told you?" The voice came again, closer this time. Nikumu sighed and turned around. Another girl was pushing her way through the crowd, followed by three others. All of them had their hair up in some wacky fashion, Mai noted. Nikumu just had it up in a bun, but it still looked ridiculous in Mai's eyes. Something was nagging at her though. She had seen these girls before.

Ty Lee had twisted around to see who was coming as well, her eyes wiped clean of the tears. When she saw them, she gave a look of acknowledgment. Mai smiled. So she had recognized them too. But as quickly as the look came it was replaced with fear and despair. Ty Lee knew something about them that Mai didn't. What was it?

The girl who spoke instantly confronted Nikumu, a stern look on her face. She was a leader of some sorts. You could tell by the way she walked and talked. The others just stood behind her, obviously displeased with Nikumu as well.

"Don't lecture me, Takumi." Nikumu spat, "You don't even understand what happened here."

"I understand you created a huge ruckus. I also understand that you were threatening an innocent girl." Takumi replied, arms crossed, "This would not bee tolerated at home."

"You know what she did! She's not innocent!" She cried back, only to get a confused face. "You really don't remember her, do you?"

"No, I don't." She shook her head, "But whatever she did doesn't deserve all of the embarrassment you brought on her and on yourself. I'm very disappointed in you." Nikumu's face turned bright red.

"S-Shut up!! And stop acting like Suki! You're not Suki, and you never will be Suki! You'll never be my leader!! You're Takumi, and you never acted like this before..." Her eyes widened in realization and tears ran down her face, "You think she's dead, don't you? That's why you've made yourself the leader…"

"Nikumu…" She whispered. By now, most of the crowd had dispersed, disappointed that there wasn't going to be a fight. Mai and Ty Lee, however, stayed right where they are. They were glad they were no longer the center of attention, but now they wanted to find out what was happening before them. And why did they somehow know these girls?

"You don't realize how this is all her fault! If she hadn't struck me down, I could have helped Suki! Then we wouldn't be here, and Suki would still be with us! Now Azula is using her and her friend as some kind of trap!" At these words, Ty Lee's eyes widened.

"You-you're the Kyoshi Warriors!" She exclaimed. Memories suddenly flew past her eyes in seconds. The fight in the woods. They were searching for the Avatar, but found these girls and that cute animal instead. Then Azula had made them fight them. They had won, of course. Oh no. Nikumu whipped her head around when she heard Ty Lee speak.

"Don't act dumb!" She cried as she slapped her cheek, "You knew all along! It was all part of Azula's master plan, huh?"

Once more Ty Lee began to cry. This time it was loud sobs of anguish. She fell to her knees and put her hands to her eyes. Mai instantly was at her side. She glared at Nikumu.

"You monster!" She yelled, showing more emotion than she usually did. **"**Ty Lee just went against her best friend to save my _life_! Azula has no place with us anymore! How dare you assume! We're _prisoners_!"

Nikumu stepped back. At first, she looked genuinely surprised. However, that was quickly replaced with a look of spite.

"That doesn't change what she has done! She helped take us down!" She insisted.

"Uh…excuse me if I'm wrong…" One of the other warriors spoke up. She cleared her throat and began to continue.

"…But didn't you fight us too?" The girl right next to her said, finishing her sentence. Both of them were pointing at Mai. She stared at them speechless. She quickly nodded, and then let her mouth hang open for a moment.

"Twins…" Takumi explained with a sigh. Ty Lee's face instantly brightened and she rushed over to the two girls.

"Are you two psychic?" She asked enthusiastically.

"No," The first one answered, "I personally would…"

"…consider it a telepathic relationship." The other finished with a wry smile. Ty Lee clapped with excitement.

"That is so cool!" She exclaimed, "My name's Ty Lee! What's yours?"

"I'm Ling Ling," The smaller one said, "and she's…"

"…Ying Ying." Ying Ying smiled, "Pleased to…"

"…make your acquaintance!" Ty Lee practically cooed like a baby. Mai hadn't seen her so enthralled in a long time. She was starting to act like her old self.

"_No_! This doesn't change anything!" Nikumu cried out, "She stopped me from saving Suki! She beat me-" She blushed at this, and looked away. Takumi put her hand on her shoulder but she smacked it away. She ran off into the prison yard, leaving the rest to stare.

Takumi walked over to Mai, leaving Ty Lee and the others to talk amongst themselves.

"Sorry 'bout Nikumu. She's moody sometimes…but lemme get this straight…" Mai was surprised at the sudden change in attitude of Takumi. Maybe this was what Nikumu was talking about before. How she was acting like Suki… "…it was you, Azula and Ty Lee who fought us in the forest?"

"Yes."

"But now you've betrayed Azula?" She cocked her eyebrow.

"Yes."

"Why?"

The question was so straightforward that it took Mai by surprise. She had to give herself a moment to think the answer through.

"She went too far. She had been using fear to manipulate us and make us do what we didn't want to do. We had had enough." Mai gulped, hoping she had made it convincing enough. It was hard for her to express emotions, especially in words. And this was very emotional. Takumi stared her straight in the eye. Mai began to sweat.

"Okay then, that's good enough for me!" She smiled real big. Mai smiled and wiped the beads from her brow. "It took me awhile to realize why Nikumu was actin' funny, but now I get it. She looks up to Suki like she was her sister, and ever since they have been separated, she ahs been blaming you two and Azula. But now she's taking it all out on Ty Lee 'cause she feels that she could have helped Suki if she hadn't lost to her. But she's not the best fighter and loses a lot, so I don't think she could have helped even if she had the chance."

"Oh…I'm sorry…about..."

"Don't be! Whenever she loses, Nikumu seeks comfort in Suki. Now that she is gone, she must learn to seek comfort within herself." Takumi had this serious look on her face, completely contrasting her earlier attitude. Mai was a bit confused.

"Actually, I meant about fighting you guys and getting Suki separated in the first place…"

"Oh…" Takumi blushed slightly, "Well…did the little speech sound convincing anyways?"

"I guess so…why?"

"I'm second-in-command and forced to practice to take over eventually. Personally, I don't give a hog-monkey, but Suki says I'm perfect for the job. That I'm the best fighter. Pfft…" She sighed, "She also says I hafta abide by the rules and have a good attitude so that I can be a good role model for the others. I'd rather clean the bathrooms." She stuck her finger in her tongue and flashed a grimace.

"That bad, huh?" Mai almost laughed.

"You have no idea! I never really wanted to be a Kyoshi Warrior in the first place. I always wanted to just read…maybe be a scholar or something…But Dad made me join the warriors…just 'cause he was a good fighter. Oh well…I've learned to deal with it…"

"Sounds a lot like me…" Mai muttered, "Forced into something you don't want to do…"

"Y'know, I'm really starting to like you."

"That's nice. But as long as you are friends with Ty Lee, I'm fine."

"You really look out for her, huh? Good friends…"

"We're like sisters…but she is so naïve sometimes I need to keep her out of trouble..."

"Well, she's real cute and not that bad a fighter if I remember right…." Takumi thought for a moment.

"Speak of the devil, here she comes…" Ty Lee flipped back and landed right in front of Mai. She had a huge smile on her face and her eyes sparkled with excitement.

"Mai! Mai! You have to meet these guys!" She sang, "This is Ling Ling, Ying Ying, and Hasoka!" All three girls bowed when their name was called.

"Mai." She said, quickly introducing herself. She didn't really want to be around all these girls right now. Takumi was pretty okay, but she could tell that these others were hyper after being with Ty Lee.

"Hey! I fought you!" One of the girls, Hasoka piped up. Mai sighed. Too much energy for her liking.

"You probably did." Mai replied nonchalantly.

"You had those cool knives that were hidden in your sleeves!"

"Shurikens."

"Those were cool! Could you show us how you did that??" Mai stared at the girl's eager face. She was pulling a cute look to get what she wanted.

"Sorry. Don't have them with me. Guards wouldn't allow it." She said.

"Oh…" The three warriors sighed in unison. Takumi shook her head and laughed.

"B-But wait! I can show you what I can do! It is a lot easier and you don't need any hurtful knives!" Ty Lee reassured them.

"Oh… okay then!" Hasoka said, her demeanor brightening. Ty Lee flipped back so that she would have more room.

"What you do is you hit certain pressure points and numb the circulation. Some people call it 'chi blocking', since it stops the energy, or 'chi', from flowing to that part of your body."

"Where are…"

"…your pressure points?" Ling Ling and Ying Ying asked.

"There are a lot of different ones everywhere. In your arm, your back, your leg," Ty Lee pointed as she spoke, "…and a little in your stomach. There are also some others, but they are usually fatal, so I don't teach them to beginners."

"That make sense…I think I read 'bout them once." Takumi said. Mai smiled slightly and sat back down on the bench. She was starting to trust these girls, and they were becoming friends with Ty Lee. She still kept her eye on the young girl. She never knew what she could get into.

"Now, all you gotta do is hit the points with rapid precision, like this!" She demonstrated a few hits to an invisible enemy. The three warriors watched, awestruck. Then they mimicked the motions to the best of their abilities, while Mai and Takumi struck up another conversation.

"Good! Good! Now, you just have to remember to always-" Ty Lee suddenly gasped in surprise and grabbed her right arm. Mai whirled around to see what happened.

Nikumu was standing there, hands still near the arm she just hit. Her eyes were cold. But oddly enough, Ty Lee didn't express any pain. Just surprise.

"Oh…nice try…you were slightly below the pressure points though. And also you need to use less force…" Ty Lee informed. Nikumu blushed and backed off to watch the rest of the lesson.

Mai smirked. So the moody one had been listening to the lesson. Probably to get some kind of revenge by using the same technique Ty Lee uses. She hoped that Ty Lee could befriend this one, but it would be hard. Mai had faith in her. Ty Lee could do just about anything.

They learned for about another hour, each slowly progressing. Takumi and Mai had been talking most of the time, discussing their childhood and such. Finally, Takumi stood up from the bench and walked over to Ty Lee.

"Ty Lee, I have a question to ask you…"

* * *

**Phew, that was fun. If you can't tell, Takumi is asking her to be a Kyoshi Warrior. This is so much fun to write, I hope you enjoy it as much as I have!! It is going to get a lot more interesting, and there will be a few guest stars popping in, and a huge mystery! There may even be a sequel! I may work more on this than Many Phases since this is canon and a bit more fun, but I really want to finish Many Phases, so I will work hard on that too!! Here is a Kyoshi check!! Nikumu is the girl that Ty Lee hit down in Appa's Lost Days. This will give you a sense of what she looks like. Also, go to dvdscreenshots./216/490.jpg and this wills how you the rest. Nikumu isn't in the picture here (you can see her in the pic before, but it is a far away shot, so I guess they cut her off lol poor Nikumu), but from left to right they are Takumi, Ying Ying, Suki (duh), Hasoka, and Ling Ling. I thnk Hasoka is soo cute! I drew a pic of her in my journal! I just wanna hug her!! Okay, anyways, I picked Ying Ying and Ling Ling as the twins because their hairstyles are similar, just one is two buns on top, and the other is two buns on bottom. I know they are a bit too like Lo and Li, and I didn't realize this at first, but they have a much stronger power than Lo and Li, which will be shown later. That's all I'll say now! R&R**


	2. Saying Goodbye

**Oissu! Sorry this took so long, I had written the whole thing out a while back, but my beta got real busy and I needed her to fix it up a bit. The Third chapter is being typed up immeadiately after this is posted, so expect it SOON!! I will also write a few MPoaS chapters while I wait for my beta to be done with that chapter (since I beat my new video game and nothing else in life seems fulfilling, lol). This chapter is a bit short (on my standards) and kind of rushed (even with my amazing beta's handiwork), so sorry!! It is hard to write without so much action when action is coming!! IT IS COMING!! Sorry...a bit hyper there...anyways, R&R! Oh yeah...almost forgot... My beta isn't sure if the summary is up to par (perfectionist!!), so could you please tell me if it is good or not to make my beta feel better? Personally, I don't care...**

**Logged out reviews: Mazda the Crazy: All of those weird words at the end of the old summary were shipping names. Shippings are relationships and contain a bit of one name and a bit of another (ex. Ty Lee x Sokka Ty L (Ty Lee) + okka (Sokka) Ty Lokka). **

Ty Lee smiled. Her friend's aura had grown from grey to light pink since they got out of prison. But she wouldn't dare tell her that. Orange and pink were Mai's least favorite colors.

Zuko, Fire Lord Zuko now, stood beside her, his hand holding hers. He looked so serious. Probably very intent on doing his best, as usual. He glanced at Mai and his eyes softened. Mai held his hand tighter and attempted to smile, but it didn't work. Today was a hard day for her.

Ty Lee turned her attention to the other side of the docks. Some of the Avatar's friends had crowded around Suki. There was the waterbender, Katara. She had always hated Ty Lee's guts during the war. But she completely believed her story about the Boiling Rock. She had seen the aftermath of her betrayal.

The little girl next to her was the earth bender, Toph. Ty Lee had learned the hard way not to call the girl cute; her head still throbbed sometimes from the fall. She had been beaten by her before, but she was still amazed by the girl's skilled bending.

Finally there was Sokka. Her heart ached. His lips were locked with Suki's for what seemed to be forever. Ty Lee sighed as she turned away. She had never seriously considered that she and Sokka would be an item, but she always hoped.

It just didn't seem fair. So many times he had entertained her thoughts with looks and flirts. But the whole time he was with another girl. She felt cheated. She figured it was Suki who had really been cheated. And yet there she was, both of them attached at the hip. Ty Lee would bet 10 silver pieces that she didn't even know what Sokka had done.

What had hurt her most was his initial reaction to seeing her in uniform. Horror. Disbelief. Fear. Like any attraction he had had to her was washed away. Just because she had been an enemy. Before, when she was on the other side, he still showed interest. What was the difference now? She was furious at his insensitivity. She had put on a fake grin and lived through it, like she had several times in her life. She knew the truth now: Sokka was out of her reach.

She could deal with it. There were millions of other boys in the world, right? No Sokka was going to ruin her love life.

"Ty Lee…" Mai muttered, bringing Ty Lee back to reality. Her friend had pulled from Zuko's light grasp and was walking briskly towards her. Mai embraced the younger girl tightly.

"Mai, don't be such a worrywart. I'm not gonna be that far away. And we'll still see each other."

"I know…" She sighed, and then looked Ty Lee up and down, "I still don't like the getup." Ty Lee grinned. Mai had always hated the Kyoshi Warrior uniform, especially when she had to wear it.

"You'll get used to it."

"I doubt it…" Mai's face was contorted with emotions, a rare sight. But Ty Lee wasn't going to jeer at her this time.

"Let your aura lighten up! I'll be fine."

"If I've told you once, I've told you a thousand times, I don't believe in-" She was cut of by a small horn. It came from the small ferry that was docked at the port.

"Okay girls, the boats about to leave!" Suki called. The rest of the Kyoshi Warriors had started to line up behind her as she broke away from Sokka and made her way towards the boat. Ty Lee started to walk over but Mai stopped her.

"Just one last thing, Ty…" She said softly. Her eyes started to waver a bit.

"Yeah?"

"Don't let anything happen to you. If you get hurt I will personally kill whoever did it to you." She gave a quick glance to Nikumu and looked back.

"I'll be fine. I promise." She looked up at Mai and opened her mouth as if to say something.

"Ty Lee! Time to go!" Suki rang out, a bit more irritated this time.

"Sorry!" She cried back, embarrassed. "Uh…bye, Mai…"

"Bye, Ty Lee…" Her face softened, and she stepped backwards. Zuko wrapped an arm around her shoulders loosely. Ty Lee nodded and ran up onto the ferry.

She was almost to the ramp when Sokka jumped in front of her.

"Hey, Ty Lee." He said, rubbing his neck awkwardly, making one of his faces.

"Hi." A blush immediately spread across her cheeks, as unwilling as it was.

"I just wanted to say that… I'm sorry of accusing you of still being on Azula's side… Y'know… Earlier… Like… After the comet…" He slumped, obviously struggling with the words. Ty Lee giggled a little.

"It's okay. I get it. I mean, I did attack you on multiple occasions." Her face fell inside her mind, but on the outside she grinned. _Mama always said if I grinned, good things would happen. So I have to keep smiling. Right? _"So… I guess this is good-bye?" Sokka shrugged.

"I guess." Ty Lee thought a moment, then decided on something rash. She looked over at the ferry, to make sure it wasn't leaving, and to make sure Suki wasn't looking. Then she gave Sokka a quick kiss on the cheek. It wasn't quite up to par with her old fantasies (far from them actually), but it would do. A heavy blush instantly covered her face.

Sokka's face mirrored hers in surprise and redness, but it also registered shock.

She grinned, genuine this time. "G'bye, Sokka!" She turned and ran up the loading ramp.

Nikumu was waiting for her.

"Have fun saying good bye to that wretch? Mee? Mai? Good riddance, I say. No good can come from the Fire Nation natives. _Any_ native." Nikumu gave Ty Lee a pointed glare. "And I saw that with Sokka." It was obviously supposed to intimidate her.Ty Lee just stuck her tongue out in reply.

Next to Zuko**,** Mai cringed.

"You heard her. She'll be fine…" Zuko said reassuringly.

"The fact that _she _said it worries me…" Mai gave a small, sad smile. "This is the first time since she ran off that we've been separated…" She looked up as Ty Lee turned from the railing of the boat to see them. The acrobat waved frantically.

"Bye guys! I love you!!" She screamed at the top of her lungs.

"You're right. She'll be fine…" Mai murmured, more to herself than anything.

"…But, if you want I can send surveillance to watch the island at all times." The Fire Lord teased.

"I'm not that worried," Mai rolled her eyes. "She can take care of herself…"

"Then don't worry at all."

"Okay then…" She pecked him on the cheek, "I won't…"

* * *

The port grew farther and farther away, but Ty Lee was still convinced she could see the small figures of Mai and Zuko standing by the Avatar's friends. She held back oncoming tears. A hand brushed her shoulders.

"Hey Ty…" A voice whispered.

"Hi, Hasoka…" She replied. The warrior stood beside Ty Lee, her two wisps of hair flying in the wind.

"You okay?"

"Oh…sure…never better…" She lied, giving a fake smile easily.

"I know how you feel…going to live in a new place and all…" She looked at the water splashing at the side of the boat, "I was new to Kyoshi once, too. After my parents died in the war I had to come and live here by myself. The Kyoshi Warriors took me in. They became my family."

"Oh…I'm so sorr-"

"Please don't be. It's nothing special. A lot of people are orphans. And it's not like your childhood was much better. You told us yourself."

"I guess…"

"Come on, be happy!" She punched her softly, "Ying Ying and Ling Ling are cooking dinner tonight. But I have to warn you, just because they are twins doesn't mean they are the same. Don't be surprised if half of your meal is burnt!"

* * *

_Ty Lee stretched as she walked out of the prison. Everything in the world seemed so much calmer. Of course, this could be due to the fact that the war was over. The birds sang merrier tunes. The sun shone brighter. Even Mai was in a better mood. And that was a lot __to say, for Mai at least__.__ She turned to look at her friend, only to be surprised that she had run ahead of her. _

_No wonder. Her mother and younger brother were standing in front of the gondolas. Mai flew up to them and hugged them eagerly._

_"Mom. Tom-Tom. What are you doing here?" She asked, a hint of emotion in her voice._

_"We're bringing you home, of course!" Her mother replied cheerily. The blood ran out of her daughter's face._

_"Home? Omashu?" She didn't try at the least to hide her disgust._

_"No. The other home. Right next to where you-know-who lives." She winked._

_"Zuko?" _

_"Fire Lord Zuko now." Mai's grin was larger than usual. She looked around._

_"Hey, where's Ty-" Then she realized what was going on._

_"We're going to bring her home too. To our home." Mai's mother announced, her voice grave. Ty Lee nodded. This didn't affect her much. She was used to being ignored by her parents._

_They entered the gondola silently after that remark, the only sound a little babbling from Tom-Tom. The Kyoshi Warriors were going to stay behind at the prison and wait for Suki, who was going to pick them up shortly. They understood that Ty Lee needed to clear some stuff up before she left._

_"Oh girls, this came for you at home. I brought it here." Mai's mother said, revealing a scroll in her hand. She gave it to Ty Lee, who blushed and handed it over to Mai. _

_"She can't read very well." Mai explained. She opened the scroll and scanned the page. She gasped. "It's about Azula!" _

* * *

**I hope you like it! The line about smiling is a reference to Many Phases of a Smile, even though technically Kei says it then...but Kei isn't canon and I want this to be as canon as possible. I must thank my beta, Aya (Zutarafan4) for writing the Ty Lokka scene I never planned (but it came out so beautifully!!), even though later she tried to erase Mai kissing Zuko (heel, Zutarian, heel). The next chapter should be longer, and I will introduce a new character and some old familiar faces! I hope it will be up soon!**


	3. Arriving at Kyoshi

**Hey y'all! Sorry this took so long (isn't this how I always start it out XD?) but I have a very strenuous (I think I spelled that wrong...) homework schedule, so this kept getting laid back. Then my beta got grounded...(So I kind of slacked off because of that XD) but she is good now and actually did a very speedy job in beta-ing. So now, I blame myself. Go on, create an angry mob. I've decided to pitch the whole 'write in my journal then type it up' idea unless I am computerless, because it just takes too much time...so HOPEFULLY the next chap will be up quicker, though I will warn you in advance I am taking a quick break so I can catch up on Many Phases. Hope you had a good halloween. I cosplayed as Tsukasa from Lucky Star, my first time cosplaying. Well...R&R I guess XD**

* * *

"Aww!" Ty Lee cooed, "They are so adorable!"

"Yeah…if you don't let them get too close…" Nikumu muttered. Ty Lee made a face, and then directed her attention back to the group of young girls in front of her. They were all wearing the cutest matching blue outfits. Now that she thought about it, everyone she had seen so far on Kyoshi Island was wearing blue. A bit odd for an Earth Kingdom city.

Kyoshi Island was so beautiful. She could tell when they landed in the bay. The forests teemed over the vast mountains in the background. Oh, did Ty Lee love forests. The water was clear and the sand on the bay was pure white. Everything seemed so perfect. The island didn't seem to have a large population. There was a small town on the docks, and a larger one that was real close by. But even then there were only a few houses.

Ty Lee was now standing in front of this statue in the town square. It was of Avatar Kyoshi, who happened to be gorgeous. Her hair fell in perfect place and her eyes were very noticeable. Of course, Ty Lee had no idea if this was exactly what she had looked like, but the artist couldn't have been _that _off. She also bared a striking resemblance to Suki, outfit and everything. Now that was weird…

The girls had been watching from afar when Ty Lee had stepped off of the boat, like everyone else on the island. But now they had ventured closer, genuinely curious at this new warrior. Probably because they were a bit naïve and didn't have as much fear of strangers as their older counterparts did. Their little faces were so round and cute that Ty Lee wanted to hug them all.

One of the girls had reddish hair and immediately stepped forward to talk. Ty Lee deduced that she was their 'leader'.

"So, what's your name?" She asked.

"Ty Lee. And yours?"

"Koko." She replied, "Where are you from, Ty Lee?"

The question caught her by surprise, and she didn't know what to say. She turned her head to ask Hasoka, only to be reminded that Hasoka had gone on ahead with Suki, Takumi, and the twins to clean out the dojo. Nikumu was the only one standing there, and she just smirked in pleasure.

"Well…I'm from…" She tried hard not to stumble over words so she wouldn't embarrass herself before Nikumu. Fortunately, Koko didn't seem interested in what she was going to say and changed the subject.

"Have you ever met the Avatar?" She asked, eyes glistening. As soon as the 'a' word came out of Koko's mouth, all of the people who had been previously avoiding Ty Lee gathered around her. They looked excited and almost restless. Nikumu sighed as if this wasn't something unusual.

"The Avatar?" Ty Lee grinned, "Well, I guess you could say so. We met up a few times during the war." It wasn't a complete lie, but it wasn't the complete truth either. Nikumu rolled her eyes. A murmur of 'oohs' and 'ahs' rippled though the crowd. One man even foamed at the mouth and fainted.

"I've met the Avatar too." She then added under her breath, "Which is better than some people around here…"

"You don't have to rub it in!" A voice cried out. Ty Lee turned and saw a young boy appear from the crowd. He marched right over to Koko and gave her a face. "And besides, meeting the Avatar is nothing big…" Ty Lee looked at him intently, not quite sure what to make of him.

"That's just Ototo." Koko informed, obviously not fazed by the boy's presence, "And he's ticked because he was away visiting family when _Aangy_ was here." She grinned with satisfaction towards the other girls, who all giggled.

"I am not!" He roared furiously, which only made them laugh more. His cheeks burned red, and he turned to walk away, only to run into Suki and Hasoka. Caught off guard, he stepped back.

"Hey, Ty Lee. Meeting the people, I see." Hasoka smiled as she looked at the large crowd, "Good job." Suki, on the other hand, kept her eye on Ototo, who stared down at the ground.

"Are you okay, Ototo?" She asked, her voice taking a motherly tone.

"Yeah…" He muttered, then his face brightened, "Is Sokka here!?"

"Not this time…" She sighed, "But I wish he was…"

_Me too_, Ty Lee thought eagerly.

"Aw…darn…" Ototo pouted a bit, "I wanted to show him my new sword fighting technique."

"He said that he would visit once he leg healed up…"

"His leg!? What's wrong with his leg!?" Ototo was shocked, eyes wide, "Did he get hurt in the final battle?"

"Yeah, but it's not much of a wound. He just broke it, and it's almost completely healed by now. He stopped wearing the crutches because it embarrassed him though…" She laughed a bit, "So it will probably take longer to get completely better."

"That sounds like Sokka…" Ototo replied, "You have to tell me all about it!"

"Later, Ototo. First we have to show Ty Lee how things work around here."

"What, that airhead?" He jabbed a thumb towards Ty Lee, who puffed up in anger, "Can't everyone else do that? I mean, you were the only one who was actually involved in the final battle. You're the only one who can tell me!"

"You know, I think Sokka will want to tell you this. He is a better storyteller than me." Suki gave Hasoka a desperate look. She quickly got the message.

"Yeah! Sokka is a really good storyteller!" She insisted with fake enthusiasm, "Suki's is cold turkeychicken compared to his!" Her leader's hand on her shoulder told Hasoka that she had said enough.

"Okay, I guess I can wait until then." Ototo admitted. He slouched over towards Ty Lee and looked her in the eye, "But you're still an airhead." Ty Lee was appalled. Had she even said a word to this boy?

"And what makes you think that?" She asked, trying to contain her rage.

"Well, for starters, you look like a…" He stopped midsentence and appeared to observe her closely, "…like a…Hey, you're not from here are you?" Ty Lee's blood ran cold. Her background had been brought up again. She looked pleadingly at Hasoka and Suki.

"Well, Ototo, Ty Lee is…" Suki began to explain, but the boy interrupted her.

"She's Fire Nation isn't she?" He asked under his breath. There was a long silence. Ty Lee twiddled her fingers through her braid. Hasoka sucked in a deep breath. Nikumu smiled.

"What?" Suki asked hesitantly, "Why do you think…"

"She is!" He raised his voice louder now, so everyone could hear, "She's Fire Nation! I knew it! Something was different about her!" His eyes filled with pride for figuring out this 'big mystery'. The crowd's expression was completely different. Even Koko looked a little hurt. Several people stepped forward with angry faces.

"People! People! Just because she isn't from here doesn't mean…" Suki raised her hands in an attempt to restore the peace. Hasoka tried to do the same, but the crowd had squeezed in so tight that she couldn't move her arms up. They began to protest.

"Why would you put our families in danger!?"

"The Fire Nation tried to burn our island to the ground!"

"You're supposed to be responsible! You protect us!"

Ty Lee felt them grab at her hair and clothes. Someone pushed her, and she fell to her knees. The people who had seemed so warm and kind had suddenly been transformed into a horrid mob. Their reaction seemed a little overdone since they were basing it on her homeland. But she couldn't blame them. Not only had the Fire Nation as a whole hurt them, but she had also. It was partially her fault the Kyoshi Warriors had been locked up. She deserved this, even if they didn't know what they were punishing her for.

A hand grabbed her arm. She turned with tears in her eyes to see Hasoka holding her. She had a look of comfort in her eyes. She had kneeled down so that she was at level with Ty Lee.

"Come on…I promise I won't let go." She smiled, and began to pull her out of the crowd. Ty Lee moved on, trying not to push any of the people as she did. Hasoka, on the other hand, pushed as hard as she could, "Move on! Move on! Nothing to see!"

The crowd slowly dispersed before Hasoka as she stormed through. Her grip on Ty Lee's arm was firm, but not painful. She wanted to make sure they wouldn't get separated. Ty Lee stared at the ground as they passed through the edge of the crowd. She could feel their stares at the back of her neck, making it all prickly. One man spit at her. Ototo stood there with his arms crossed.

"Fire Nation scum…" He muttered in her direction. She winced at his words and hurried along behind Hasoka when another man at the very edge of the crowd stuck out his foot. Ty Lee fell into the dirt, wondering why it was so different from the soldiers she had met after Zuko's coronation. At Ty Lee's small thump on the ground, Suki turned and helped her up gently.

"Come on." The leader whispered soothingly. Ty Lee felt like she might cry.

The small group of girls trudged away, looking back every now and then to see angry faces directed towards them. Ty Lee remained silent, her face ashen.

"I'm so sorry, Ty Lee. I was hoping since the war was over, they would have dropped their previous prejudices." Suki apologized once they were out of earshot from the crowd.

"No, its okay. I deserve some of that, I suppose." She gave a weak smile, "And the Fire Nation has been pretty awful to these people."

"But once they find out you were Azula's right-hand-man, your life here will be a living nightmare." Nikumu sneered. Suki threw a stern look her way, and the smile immediately left her face. Ty Lee sighed. She was so grateful for having Suki to keep that girl in her place.

"Don't listen to her, Ty Lee. Once you prove yourself to be a great warrior and a good member of the community, they will forget all of this." Hasoka said reassuringly.

"Oh, you won't have to worry about that." Ty Lee replied, "I'm definitely gonna prove myself to them so that they will know I am not like that. I'll do so many good deeds that they will consider me a saint!" She clenched her hand in a fist and raised it in the air, a look of determination on her face.

"And I'll help you get every opportunity you get to prove yourself!" Hasoka exclaimed with the same enthusiasm, thrusting her arm so that it crossed over Ty Lee's.

"That's great and all…" Nikumu said sarcastically, "…but why don't we head over to the dojo already? Takumi and the twins are going to be worried."

"You mean Ling Ling is going to be worried." Suki corrected, "You know how anxious she gets."

"Yeah…she is really ditzy sometimes…but it doesn't even _compare_ to these two…" She tried to make a casual motion towards Ty Lee and Hasoka, but they saw it plainly.

"Hey!"

"We are not ditzy!" Hasoka replied with her cheeks sucked in.

"Well you certainly are loud…" Nikumu muttered as she walked past them. Suki shook her head in exasperation and motioned that they should follow. The two girls obeyed reluctantly.

Ty Lee watched her scenery as the moved closer to the dojo. The forest had grown denser the further they got from the town. The road that they had previously been travelling on had disappeared and now they followed a coarsely made path to the top of the hill. At the end of the way was a small hut that Ty Lee instantly recognized as a dojo.

"There it is! There's the dojo!" Hasoka cried out ecstatically. She grabbed hold of Ty Lee's arm and began to drag her towards the building, "C'mon, before Ling Ling dies of worry!" Ty Lee laughed and began to run a little faster. Hasoka raced in and gave a little 'whoop' of excitement.

Ling Ling and Ying Ying turned their heads. They were lying down on two fold up beds that were up against the far wall of the dojo. Ty Lee looked around. It was a pretty basic setup, just like the dojos she had seen in the Fire Nation. But what made it different was the decorative fans that lined the wall. Takumi was setting up another bed on the opposite wall.

"Oh! You made it back. Ling Ling…" Ying Ying started.

"…was scared that you had been eaten up by some horrible monster!" She finished, her eyes wavering in fear.

"That's actually not that far from the truth…" Nikumu huffed as she entered the place. Takumi stretched out on the bed she had just set up.

"What happened?" She asked nonchalantly.

"Oh, the entire village tried to mob us," Nikumu explained, "All because of Miss Fire Nation scum over there."

"Nikumu it wasn't that bad." Suki corrected.

"Doesn't mean it won't get worse…" She muttered. "I see you already started getting ready for bed. A little early huh?"

"Well, since we have no training today…"

"…we might as well get _some_ sleep." Ling Ling giggled. Ty Lee stared at her for a second.

"Wait…sleep…here?" She asked in a stupor. Her spirits suddenly dropped. It wasn't that the dojo wasn't…bad. It was just that she was so used to something a bit…bigger. She wanted to slap herself. She felt so conceited, expecting some luxurious place for her too sleep. But it was too late. She had already said the words.

"Of course, where else?" Hasoka asked with a grin.

"Oh well…I um…" She fumbled trying to explain herself. Nikumu glared at her.

"You're so full of it, you know? Just because you are spoiled and get everything you want at home doesn't mean you get it here." She spat.

"N-No! That wasn't it! It was just…" Ty Lee nervously stuttered, "Hasoka! Hasoka told me that you…you had a dormitory or something!" She gave her a desperate look.

"Yeah! Yeah! I forgot about that! I told her about the old dorms!" She said, catching on.

"And what…forgot to tell her that her friend Prince Loser burned them down when he tried to flatten the rest of the village?" Before Ty Lee could reply Nikumu had strutted over to the stack of beds that was lying in the corner. Ty Lee didn't know how she had missed that before.

"Sorry…" She whispered.

"No, its okay. You were confused." Hasoka said as she went over to grab her own bed. Ty Lee followed in suite. The beds were simply mattresses with slabs of wood that held them up. Simple. Ty Lee hated herself. She still felt like she should be getting more.

Ty Lee set up her bed next to Hasoka and started to lie down. She was quickly stopped by a hand tugging her braid.

"Nuh-uh. Not yet you don't. You have to come and receive an official 'Hasoka Kyoshi tour'!" She insisted.

"Not too long, Hasoka." Suki reminded as the girl began to pull Ty Lee from the bed, "She'll need her sleep so she'll get used to the schedule."

"The schedule?"

"Yeah. Up at sunrise, down at sunset. We don't waste an hour of daylight." Hasoka recited, "Start with jogging, end with stretches. You get used to it."

"I hope so…" Ty Lee gulped.

"You better." Nikumu inserted her opinion, "We might have to cut you if you don't fit _all_ the requirements."

"Oh, c'mon Nikumu. You weren't exactly a morning person yourself." Takumi commented. Instantly deflated, Nikumu retired to her bed in a huff.

"C'mon Ty Lee! Let's go!" Hasoka said, pulling her arm towards the entrance. "I'll only be able to show you a bit today, but the next time we get a day off we'll hit the whole island!"

"Okay! Can't wait!" She ran forward, surprisingly dragging Hasoka. She just laughed and went back to her leading. They quickly passed the village, not wanting to attract any more attention. Ty Lee kept her head down, feeling stares boring into her as they went through. Hasoka held on harder to her hand, reassuring her that she was safe.

When they finally got past the village, Hasoka pointed towards where they were headed. It was the bay where they had sailed in. Ty Lee was a bit confused. Hadn't she already seen this?

"Well, you haven't seen what's _inside_ it!" She replied with a wink. "Now take off your shoes." She complied, and they began to walk down the beach. The water hit their feet and Ty Lee jumped back.

"That's cold!!" She shrieked. A giggle behind her caused her to turn around. "Koko!" She stood there with her hand over her mouth, watching the new Kyoshi Warrior shiver in the chill.

"First time in the bay, huh?" The little girl asked with a spark in her eye. "It's always cold. Even now in the summer. Probably because we are so close to the south pole."

"Wow Koko, you should be a teacher." Hasoka smiled, "I've lived here most my life, and I didn't even consider that."

"Cold? All the time?" Ty Lee scowled, "Oh well. I guess I'll have to get used to that too…"

"So whatcha doing?" Koko asked.

"It's a surprise," Hasoka replied with a finger over her mouth. Koko nodded knowingly and copied the action. This irked Ty Lee. She wanted to know what she was going to see. Then Ty Lee remembered something.

"Koko, aren't you angry at me?" She inquired with a sad face.

"Hm? Why would I be?"

"Well…you know earlier…" She trailed off. It still hurt to think about it.

"I don't think that just because you are Fire Nation it means you are evil." Koko replied with a shrug, "You look too nice for that."

"Thanks Koko…"

"You're welcome. Now hurry, I think Hasoka's surprise is coming!" She pointed towards the sun. Ty Lee looked anxiously. Nothing.

"I don't see…" Splashing caught her attention and turned towards Hasoka. She was wading out farther into bay, a small fish in her hand. She was making a high-pitched chirping noise. Ty Lee watched, fascinated. Then suddenly, Hasoka whirled the fish in her hand and threw it. Ty Lee was amazed at her throw; it went a good distance from where she was.

"Get back! Get back!" She screamed with a smile on her face. Ty Lee instantly flew backwards. Then her mouth opened wide.

Right behind Hasoka was a giant sea monster, erupting out of the water. It had long tendrils coming from its head, and large nostrils. It quickly grabbed the fish in its mouth and jumped back into the water. A large wave shot up and almost engulfed Hasoka.

"What…was…that!?" Ty Lee asked in wonder and fear.

"Just the Unagi." Koko replied nonchalantly. "Hasoka feeds it."

"Really?"

"Yeah, but that was just a snack." Hasoka explained as she ran up to them. She wringed out her hair, which was soaked from the splash the Unagi had made on the way back. Her make-up ran down her face. "You should come when I really feed it. We take about four baskets of fish."

"I'd like to see that." Ty Lee nodded. She spinned around for a moment and then stopped. She pointed at the landscape further inland, "What's that mountain called? I noticed it when we sailed in."

"Oh that?" Hasoka shrugged, "That's Mount Hono'o. It's a dormant volcano. The evil dragon that eats children lives there."

"You're joking, right?" She gave a little face. "There are no dragons anymore, right?"

"Who knows?"

"Koko…she's joking…right?"

"Guess you'd have to go up and see yourself…" Koko replied with grin.

"Answer me…Koko! Hasoka!" The two of them laughed as Ty Lee ran after them, treading through the water to get her answer.

* * *

**There. The end of this chappy. I got some good Hasoka-Ty Lee bonding (and no, not Yuri or Shojo-ai, just plain good ole friendship for pete's sake!!!) and some humor, and some Nikumu sarcasm XD and villager attacks. Please don't follow example of the Kyoshi village and attack me for not updating XD. Oh, and this is a forewarning. There is a big mystery in this story that hasn't exactly started yet but I want to lay out a few rules for when it does. 1) You may make perdictions, but please, if you really think it is close to the truth, do not simply state your perdiction in your review but say you have an idea and then I will pm you from there. This is because I think this is a really tricky plot, and I don't want every one to figure it out early because someone guessed right on a review and then everyone read it and realized it was logical and then it was no surprise. Not that I think that would happen XD. Well, that was this chappy. I actually thought the end was quite rushed, but my beta assured me otherwise so I will go with this. Hope you enjoyed it!! Oh, I forgot, Ototo is based on my little brother...Ototo! He has a real life crush on Suki, but I am enforcing a new ship...Kokoto! Koko and Ototo sitting in a tree...he's not very happy with me for that. But he wouldn't give me a laffy taffy one day, so I said I would write him into one of my fanfics (which he always BEGS about), so I got a laffy taffy, he gets into the story. He will actually be VERY important later.**


	4. The New Life

**ALRIGHT!!! My beta finally updated!! So heres the next chappie. I'm finishing up the other as we speak, and I should send it off to her maybe tommorow. This is relatively long, so it should like, make up for all the lost time XDDDD There is a bunch of Ty Lee and Hasoka bonding, but bear in ming I don't approve of guy-guy girl-girl pairings, so that is not what I'm trying to convey. They are just becoming good friends. OH YEAH! I'm going to DisneyWorld in two weeks!!! YAY ME!! So I'll try to update both this and Many Phases at least once before that, since I'm on spring break and I have a lot of time. But I'm going to be drawing and animating as well, but I'll put fanfiction in priority. R&R!!**

* * *

"All right girls, up and at 'em! Time to start the day!"

Ty Lee groaned and attempted to roll over in her bed. She didn't want to get up just yet. It had been hard getting to sleep the night before. Not only was she in a new place, and it was hard to get comfortable, but she had a lot on her mind, and couldn't seem to stop thinking. She couldn't exactly blame herself, though. She had had an eventful day.

"Ty Lee, you better get up!" Hasoka said, poking her friends face. Ty Lee waved her hand in the air lazily**.**

"Five more minutes…" She mumbled.

"Too late!" Ty Lee's eyes snapped open. She was surprised to find herself suddenly on the ground. She looked around and saw Hasoka standing before her. She was already fully dressed in uniform, though she lacked makeup and her hair was down. One of her hands was on her hip, and she smiled.

"You just pushed me!" Ty Lee exclaimed in realization.

"You're real slow today. Not a morning person, huh?" She commented, "Now, hurry up. Get dressed. We don't want to leave without you."

Ty Lee nodded and got up. For convenience's sake, she had learned the day before that all the warriors wore the under pieces of their uniform as sleeping garments. Then, when they would wake up the next morning, they would just have to put on their armor and such. At first, Ty Lee was disgusted at the thought of wearing the same clothes every day _and_ every night, until she was informed that every two days there was a change for a newer set. She was relieved.

She folded her sheets and neatly sat them on her bed. Quickly, she slipped the armor over her head and fastened it together. The arm and shin protectors came on next, and finally, she put on her boots. By the time she had it on though, the rest of the team was already applying the makeup. She sighed, and grabbed her makeup case.

Her case was nothing more than a small bag which carried her facial makeup. The makeup was given to her when she joined the Kyoshi Warriors, and she was told that every month they had to re-supply their stock. Ty Lee took out her two tubes of makeup and the small compact mirror that Mai had given her. It had a beautiful design on the back that portrayed a poodle-monkey eating some kind of fruit. She smiled. Mai always knew what she needed _and_ what she liked.

She grabbed the tube of white makeup and began to rub it all over her face, her neck, and her hands. These were really the only skin that showed with the outfit on. Then came the tricky part. She lifted the mirror so she could see and closed one of her eyes. Slowly, she painted the red makeup around the eye. It made a really funny looking shape at the end. Ty Lee never understood how the original warriors chose this particular shape for the makeup around the eyes. She returned everything to the case, and went on to the next part.

Taking out her brush, she combed her hair. It had become very dirty while she was in prison, but now it had returned to its glossy glow. After making sure there were no tangles, she began to braid it. Instead of letting her braid hang down, like she usually did, she folded it over to make a loop and topped it off with her hair piece. This was how she did her hair when she was a fake Kyoshi Warrior, and this is how she did it now that she truly was one. The long braid had often gotten in her way during combat. She also found it a lot more comfortable. Finally, she wrapped her headband around her forehead. She had a completed Kyoshi Warrior uniform.

"You finally done, Ty Lee?" Hasoka asked. She was cleaning up her bed area.

"Hey, I didn't take _that_ long." She puffed her cheeks.

"Right." She rolled her eyes and then smiled brightly, "Hey Suki, time to go yet!?" She called out. Ty Lee looked around. Suki wasn't in the room. Or maybe she was. The sun hadn't come up yet, and Ty Lee couldn't see very far from where the candle was lit in the middle of the dojo. Suki could be hanging around in a corner where the light didn't touch.

"Almost," The reply surprised Ty Lee. It came through one of the windows, not from inside. But it was definitely Suki's voice. What was she doing outside?

Ty Lee went over and lifted her upper body in the frame of a window. Her head was out enough so that she could turn and look in different directions. She couldn't see very well, but could make out some shapes such as the trees that were near the dojo. No sign of Suki though. She hadn't sounded too far. Ty Lee turned and looked at a different angle. She couldn't make anything out at that point. She sighed. The moon was still outside though. Maybe if she stared at it long enough, she would be able to see better than before.

"What are you doing?" Ty Lee nearly fell out of the window. She grabbed hold of the frame to steady herself. Suki's face was in front of hers. Even in the poor light Ty Lee recognized her. She looked confused.

"I-I was just finding out where you were." She answered, embarrassed. "I couldn't tell what you were doing, that's all."

"Well, get out of that window before you break it." Suki sighed. Ty Lee nodded, and drew back quickly. Suddenly, she wondered if anyone had seen her dangling out of the window. It seemed unlikely, since it was so dark and they would have said something by then. She was relieved.

Suki walked in soon after. Ty Lee did a cartwheel over to her.

"So, what were you doing?" She asked her new leader.

"Just making sure it wasn't too wet outside. Sometimes it rains a bit in the night, and the paths get slippery. Wouldn't want anyone to get hurt." She explained. "Okay girls, its time to go." She called. Ty Lee heard everyone else march up around the two of them.

"Hasoka, you stay with Ty Lee and make sure she doesn't get lost since she doesn't know the way yet." Takumi instructed.

"Aye Aye, first mate." From the dim light you could see her salute, as if she were a crew member on a ship. Takumi just shook her head.

"All right, move out!" Suki commanded. All of the girls ran out of the dojo at once. Ty Lee was so bewildered and unprepared that she allowed Hasoka to literally drag her out. She couldn't see any better than before, nor did she even know the path they were taking, and was more than happy to have her friend lead the way.

"Come on, Ty. We'll get behind if you don't start moving. It's not called a 'morning jog' for nothing!" Hasoka pleaded.

"But I don't know where we are going!" Ty Lee admitted.

"Just hold on to my hand and run."

"Okay." Ty Lee grabbed her hand and squeezed it tight. Then they began their jog.

Ty Lee was amazed at how different it was at night. It was like they were on a completely different island. All the trees clumped together and the familiar landmarks blurred into each other. She heard sounds of birds and animals she had never heard before. The atmosphere was different too. It was wet, like morning dew. She remembered what Suki said and deduced that it had probably rained a bit last night.

Hasoka navigated the route so smoothly. At first, Ty Lee was afraid they would hit a tree or trip over a rock or even fall into a stream. She couldn't see what was in front of her, so she wasn't sure how Hasoka hadn't. Lots of practice, it seemed. She wondered if she would ever be able to do it by herself. If she was doing it every morning, she would have to get it eventually.

It seemed like an eternity before they were finally done. Ty Lee knew she had never run that much all at once before. Her breathing was fast and shallow, and she was sure a mixture of sweat and dew had affected her makeup. They stopped in front of the dojo, and slumped against the front wall. Hasoka was laughing.

"Not too bad for your first go through." She commented.

"I didn't realize it would be that long…" Ty Lee admitted. "But it wasn't that hard."

"That's the mindset!" Hasoka beamed and playfully hit Ty Lee's arm. Ty Lee was glad she didn't know where her pressure points were. It would have hurt a bit more.

"So, where is everyone else?" She asked. Looking around, she noticed that no one else was around. And this time she couldn't blame the poor light. The sun was rising at a normal pace and illuminated the world. Absolutely no other Kyoshi Warrior was around.

"I dunno. They should be here right now…we had a later start than them…" She reasoned. She stood up and scanned the island from their view. "Maybe they went into the village?"

"Yeah, let's go look!" Before Hasoka had time to reply, Ty Lee started to run down the path to the village. The path cut straight down the hill, and wasn't quite ideal for rushing down. About halfway through it, she lost her balance and almost fell face first the rest of the way. Fortunately, she saw it coming and converted the fall into a cartwheel. The ground was rough and cut into her hands, but she didn't mind. Her hands had received worse wear before.

She reached the bottom of the hill only to have Hasoka panting behind her.

"You hafta slow down sometimes for us slow people." She said smiling.

"Sorry, that was a little spontaneous." She rubbed the back of her neck as she apologized.

"No, you're an acrobat. It's in your blood or something like that." Hasoka replied. Ty Lee smiled but said nothing. She knew for a fact that her blood had nothing to do with it. No one in her family had supported her dream.

"Come on, let's go find out what they are doing without us." Ty Lee walked ahead, leaving Hasoka to follow. The village opened up right in front of them, and they entered without haste.

"Uh…you notice anything weird, Ty?" Hasoka asked, after looking around.

"…not really, why?" She wasn't quite sure what would be so weird about the village. It was calm, no trouble or anything to be seen.

"Well, there is like, no one else out here except us…" She trailed off and stopped walking. "Oh, you don't know yet."

"Know what?" This also caused Ty Lee to stop.

"At your home the people didn't probably get up as early as here." Ty Lee was grateful she said 'home' and not Fire Nation, "All the villagers would be out here by now working and such."

"So, since they're not here, something bad happened?" She was starting to feel unnerved. Hasoka seemed calm, but what she was saying scared her. Where would people just suddenly disappear? And why on her first official day of protecting them? She stared at Hasoka, waiting for an answer. She appeared to be thinking, "Well?"

"No," She finally said, "They're probably just at a village meeting."

"Oh," Ty Lee sighed a huge sigh of relief, "That's good."

"And that also explains the missing Kyoshi Warriors. They might have got the message before we came in."

"So, why didn't they leave a sign for us or something?"

"Maybe…" She put her hand to her chin, "Maybe they wanted us to get there on our own…"

"Okay then!" Ty Lee said with her usual enthusiasm returning, "Where's the meetinghouse?"

"Just this way, follow me." The walked past several buildings Ty Lee had seen before. The Kyoshi statue was not in sight though. They went through a small hall between two structures and took a left. Ty Lee's eyes widened.

"What's that!?" She asked, running towards a building that looked like it went through a war. It was burnt on every surface. Many pieces of the walls and ceiling had crumbled down. The windows had collapsed on themselves. "What happened here!?"

"That was our dormitory…" Hasoka said with a frown. "It looked nicer before Zuko accidentally destroyed it…" Ty Lee turned to look at Hasoka. She stared on at the building with an unwavering gaze. There was no emotion present in her eyes, but Ty Lee knew better. She was probably trying not to show it. Ty Lee had done that so many times when she was with Azula. Of course, she also showed more emotion than wanted at some points. Like when they went to Ember Island…

She bit her lip, trying not to accept the memories that were arriving. She didn't want to think about Azula. How she was decent at one time. How she went absolutely insane to the point of no return…because of her actions. She looked at her hands. The hands that caused it all. Her brows furrowed as she shook off the thoughts and turned back to the dormitory. Or, what was left of it that is.

"I'm sorry that he did this…you know he's different now…" She tried to explain.

"I know. Suki told us all about how brave he was in breaking herself and Sokka's dad out and such." Hasoka replied, "I think he was just confused before."

"You got that right."

"Besides, if I still considered him to be evil, wouldn't I have a reason to consider you as well?" This caught Ty Lee by surprise, and she found herself blushing, "I mean, you brought more direct harm to us than Zuko…"

"O-Okay! I get it!" She cut her off quickly and hoped she didn't sound too forceful, "Let's go to the meetinghouse already…"

"Oh, I'm sorry Ty Lee." Hasoka went over and put her hand on her back, "That was a bit uncalled for. I got caught in the moment, you know what I mean?" Ty Lee nodded. "But you are right, we should get going. The meetinghouse is just to the right of here." She walked ahead, unaware of Ty Lee lingering. The younger girl looked longingly at the dormitory, and then followed her friend.

The meetinghouse loomed ahead of them, a large edifice with many windows and a giant door. It was a blue color, like all the other buildings in the village. And practically everything else in Kyoshi for that matter, except for the people's auras. As they approached it they heard voices inside, confirming their guess. A meeting was indeed in process.

Ty Lee felt an adrenaline rush. She had never been involved with anything before like this. Before, a village meeting was more like a war conference and her parents had to drag her there along with the rest of her sisters. Just a bunch of old men talking about stuff that never really mattered. But this was different. The village, the whole island in fact, seemed to be much closer and more loving. They would talk about important issues. And she would get to be a part of it.

She practically ran to the door, only to have Hasoka step in front of her.

"What are you doing? We need to get in there!" Ty Lee tried to push past her.

"By the looks of it, the meeting is already in progress. If we just barge in, it will draw unnecessary attention to us…and most importantly to you…" She looked grave. Ty Lee wanted to hug her so bad. Hasoka always seemed to look out for her. And to think she was going to push her away just to probably embarrass herself by interrupting the entire village.

"Okay then, how do we get in?"

"I don't know…Maybe we should prop ourselves in the windows to find out what they are doing." Hasoka teased. The color drained from Ty Lee's face and instantly was replaced with a blush.

"You-You saw that this morning?!" She asked, completely mortified. She thought it was too dark to see, but Hasoka's comment seemed to counter that thought.

"Saw what?" She gave a mock look of surprise on her face and covered her mouth with hand.

"Very funny." Ty Lee rolled her eyes and smiled. "Now seriously, how do we get in?"

"There is a back door on the other side…" Hasoka thought aloud, "But I still think us coming in at all will cause a disruption. But we have to get in, it could be important…so I guess the back door is our best bet."

"Back door it is then." Ty Lee's eyes cast a gleam, "Race you there." Hasoka's face brightened.

"You're on!" Before Ty Lee could think, Hasoka had started to run around the building. She stared for a few minutes in utter confusion, but realized what she had to do. She jumped up a neighboring tree and used it to launch herself onto the roof. Her hands grasped the tiles and cartwheeled to the edge of the top. To finish it off, she back-flipped to the ground, landing with her hands in the air. She immediately dropped them, realizing that it was an impulse she had kept from being in the circus. She did miss the applause sometimes, but knew she could always go back. But she didn't necessarily want to**…**

She looked around and saw the door, planted parallel the front entrance. It was smaller than the other one, though. She was about to walk in, when she realized Hasoka wasn't there. She turned, expecting to see her friend creeping up behind her. Not a sign of anyone. Ty Lee froze.

"Lookin' for me?"

Ty Lee cried out, only to have Hasoka's hand muffle it, "Sh! We don't want to make it look like we are doing something troublesome, now do we?" She slowly released her hold.

"No, sorry…" She looked down to the ground, "Where were you?"

"Behind you, except when you turned I followed so you wouldn't see me. Something we learned when we studied stealth." Hasoka replied nonchalantly. "Let's _finally_ go in now." Ty Lee nodded, and stepped aside to let Hasoka get the door. She fumbled with the handle for a second, and then flung it wide open.

They were met with the backs of the entire village, all unaware of their opening the door. Ty Lee stood on the tips of her toes and still couldn't see through the mass of people in front of her. Hasoka motioned for her to follow, and they walked into the meetinghouse. There was barely any room to move, but they were able to shut the door behind them. Everyone was talking at once, and Ty Lee wondered if this was really an organized meeting or not.

The walls were as tall as the building itself, making the ceiling seem so far away. Ty Lee had never really seen a structure that had a high ceiling before, let alone been inside one. It wasn't decorated much indoors, save a painting here or there. There wasn't any chairs either, explaining why everyone was standing. Perhaps they sat at one point but now she couldn't tell.

The people's voices grew louder, echoing off the ceiling. No one person in particular was announcing anything like she had imagined. It felt like one big mess.

"What's going on here?" She whispered. Hasoka just stared at her and cupped her hand to her ear. She realized at that point there was no way to communicate with anyone. It was entirely too loud.

A hand grabbed her arm and she cried out for the second time that morning. Fortunately, in this situation no one could hear her. It was Takumi. Ty Lee was afraid she would be angry, but instead she looked relieved.

"Ty Lee! Come on!" Her voice could barely be heard amidst the crowd. Ty Lee turned to tell Hasoka but it was too late. Takumi was already pushing through the people and her grasp was not wavering.

They made their way to the front of the meetinghouse, revealing a stage that was previously unseen by Ty Lee. The rest of the Kyoshi warriors were standing up there, along with an old man. The people noticed them moving through, and she felt their stares on her. She was reminded of the other day, and she immediately hoped this wouldn't be a repeat. She also hoped that Hasoka didn't freak out when she realized that she was gone.

Ty Lee stepped up onto the stage, as Takumi directed. As she did the crowd slowly began to calm down. They now talked in whispers. Probably about her. Suki walked over.

"I'm sorry; we should have told you about this. But we kind of wanted it to be a surprise…" She said. Ty Lee noticed that she wasn't acting all proper as usual. She had a smile on her face. "Here, this is Oyaji. He was out with the farmers that live further inland yesterday, and didn't get the chance to meet you. He's the village leader." She lifted her hand to the old man who came over to them. His hair was gray, but now that she looked closer, Ty Lee realized that he looked a bit younger than she had earlier thought.

"You must be Ty Lee." He said warmly. "I've heard so much about you. I know all about your part in the war." His eyes softened, and she knew exactly what he was talking about.

"Thank you, sir. I really didn't do that mu-" She started to say, but then Oyaji did something unexpected. He wrapped his arms around her, and held her close. She wasn't sure how to react, but allowed him to hug her nevertheless. It was a nice feeling, and she wasn't sure if she wanted it to leave quite yet, even if the situation was awkward.

"You did more than anyone else could." He whispered in her ear. Before she could completely register all that he said her eyes filled with tears. She let all the emotions she had so far held up on Kyoshi Island to flow out. All the hurt. The pain. The anguish. He rubbed his hand on her back, comforting her.

She could hear nothing else in the meetinghouse but her sobs. The villagers had completely quieted down, all their attention focused on her. She didn't care. She wasn't affected by them in that moment.

After a moment she drew back and turned from the crowd to wipe off the tears from her face. She knew by now her makeup was utterly ruined from the mixture of sweat and tears. And yet, she never felt better. She showed her emotions to everyone, whether they fully understood why she was crying or not. It took off a burden she carried. She knew that now she was allowed to be sad, to cry. She didn't have to pretend anymore.

She turned back to Oyaji, wiping away a stray tear.

"I'm sorry…" She said.

"That's alright. It wasn't your fault." He replied, "Now I think it is time to formally introduce you to the island."

Hasoka finally reached the stage, obviously after some struggle with the crowd. She stood behind Ty Lee.

"So, did you know about this?" Ty Lee asked her.

"About what?" For once, Hasoka wasn't joking, and it was apparent by the look on her face. "Is something happening?"

"I'm still not sure what it is, but I like it so far."

"It was Suki's idea." Ling Ling announced, "She wanted…"

"…to give you a new start."

"All because of the _incident_ yesterday." Nikumu rolled her eyes, "They think you can't take care of yourself and you need to gain the favor of the villagers." Ty Lee's heart swelled. They were trying to make it more comfortable for her. They were looking out for her. They cared about her.

Suki stepped forward with Oyaji by her side. She stared at the crowd, who stared back intently.

"Citizens of Kyoshi Island, I have a few things to tell you a few things about our new warrior, Ty Lee…"

And thus, the new life began.

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**I didn't want to write Suki explaining her knowledge of Ty Lee's past. That would be boring and longer. So I ended it off in what I thought was a clever ending. It also gave me my inspiration for the title of the chapter. Since after this, everyone looks at Ty Lee differently, so it is like a ocmpletely different life for her. I realize that Nikumu, the twins, and Takumi haven't had much spotlight, but I promise to write more of them for those who like them XDD I personally like LingLing a lot, and Nikumu is just so much fun to do! But Ty Lee has so much to go through with Hasoka and Suki that I forget about the others sometimes. I hope that this wasn't too sappy or anything. I sympathize too easily(which is why my favorite characters have horrid pasts, or die, or have someone they know that dies...) so I figured she had to get over her emotions somehow. But that doesn't mean she is exactly OVER her emotions, she just knows she can deal with them without hiding it...Let me know what you thnk of it so far. Bye!**


	5. Picking Up Special 'Cargo'

**AH!!! I'M SOO SORRY!! BLAME MY BETA READER!!! Here's an update, and I'm so sorry, its really short! But The next chapter has alrady been sent to my Beta so she can start working on it soon. Its longer than this one too. Well...not much more to say. Enjoy, and please review! I beg of you!**

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The sun caressed the earth below as a sweet wind blew through. Joy was filled in every object, love in every action. And Ty Lee was in the midst of it.

She carried the carried the basket of fruit waist-high so it wouldn't strain her arms. It was only an arrangement of papayas and pomegranates, and yet it felt so heavy. It was then that she realized that she needed to grow some muscles in her arms. She was strong enough to pull a few punches and to hold herself up, but most of her power was in her legs and abdomen. Perhaps they would grow during their daily routine.

She had finally memorized her official routine of activities that made up her day. If they could really be called activities. They were all strenuous and sweat-inducing, not at all what Ty Lee called 'fun'.Carting around shipments of various supplies, rebuilding assorted wreckages from the time Zuko had burned half the village down, and doing menial chores for random, rude busy-bodies vacationing on the island were definitely not fun. She did enjoy the stretches at the end, even though Nikumu said that she was a show-off. That irked her. She was not showing off. She was just doing what she did best, contorting.

Now that the routine was over the warriors were doing community service. It felt like the physical work was ongoing, but working for the people had its advantages. Ever since the town meeting three weeks ago instead of dirty looks she received smiles from the villagers. One man even wholeheartedly thanked her for her contribution to the end of the war. It was odd how one revelation could change one's opinion of someone so drastically.

She wasn't sure how to feel. She was glad everyone now knew what she did, and she especially enjoyed their praise. But they didn't realize how much pain she had caused to herself and Azula when she had intervened. She took her friend to the point of no return, to complete insanity. The honor for doing this felt a bit misplaced. Even though it benefited these people, it had hurt others. She may be a hero to them, but she was a villain in her own mind. Did a good person such as they thought she was betray their best friend? For any reason, even to end a war?

She shook her head and sighed. She didn't want to ruin this so-far perfect day by moping and doubting.

She set down the basket on the counter of the merchant's booth and wiped the sweat off her brow. The merchant grabbed one of the papayas and tossed it to her. She caught it, a bit surprised. Her face must have shown it.

"For you." He said.

"Oh, I couldn't…" It wasn't that she was against the idea of eating a papaya; actually, it was one of her favorite fruits. But the fact that she was kind of taking it from the merchant without paying felt a bit against the moral of the Kyoshi Warriors. Not that there was actually a set code concerning them.

"Please, it's the least I can do." He implored her to keep it. Was it against the 'code' to take it if they were urging you too? She took it hesitantly, unused to such generosity.

"Thanks, sir." She said gratefully.

"Anytime, Ty Lee." He waved as she walked off.

She bit into the papaya and let the sweet juice fill her mouth. Another thing that was different about the island; everyone knew her name. She felt bad for not knowing many of villagers' names, but they couldn't expect her to know them all by now. She was still fairly new there. She did know a majority of the shopkeepers and the children, but the sailors and travelling merchants were always coming and going, and she could never quite keep them straight.

There were also several farming families that lived further inland that she had never even met. They were supposed to check on them every month or so. She wondered if they felt neglected. She knew that feeling. But at the same time, she had heard that they preferred to be alone, so it probably didn't bother them. Absently, she wondered what it would be like to farm. The Fire Nation didn't much farm anything, and the few things it did farm were all far away from the palace, in the countryside near the two ends of the crescent the land mass made.

With her free hand she un-looped her braid and let it hang freely. Although it was more convenient put up during her duties, at the moment it felt heavy. And heavy hair really weighs a person down physically and mentally. Besides, it was the style she was used to, no matter how many times she had to wear it the other way.

She was about to take another bite of the papaya when it was quickly snatched out of her hands. She stared bewildered at the empty space where her snack once was.

"Wha…!?" She turned and saw the perpetrator, "Hasoka! What was that for!?" Hasoka flashed a grin as she took a generous bite from the papaya.

"Just hungry." She threw it back and Ty Lee caught it with better coordination than before. "Hm…it's a bit too ripe for my liking. You can have the rest."

"You just don't want me to be angry at you for eating the whole thing." Ty Lee corrected.

"Maybe." Hasoka shrugged, "Anyways, Takumi wanted to see you. Needs you for a job or something." Ty Lee held in a sigh. She had just finished her work for the day. What could Takumi possibly want her for? It wasn't in her position to complain or to judge her work though. She had to obey, even if it meant working for another hour. Besides, she needed the exercise.

"Well, where is she?"

"Oh yeah, that might be important…" She laughed at her own ignorance, "She was over at the dojo when she asked me to find you, so I would assume she is still there."

"Thanks." She began to walk away, then turned back, "See you tonight!"

"You know it!"

Ty Lee started off the short trip to the dojo in quick, long strides. She wanted to get whatever Takumi wanted her to do done as fast as possible. Then she might be able to do something she actually wanted to do.

As she made her way over she finished off her papaya and threw the stem into the nearby woods. She had been afraid that Hasoka's bite would have completely ruined the rest of the fruit, but she found that it tasted completely normal. Odd.

When she came to the path that led to the dojo she found Takumi standing in the middle of it.

"There you are." The older warrior walked past her and motioned for her to follow, "C'mon, we have to go if we are to make it in time."

"Go where?" Ty Lee was confused.

"We have to pick up some…_very_ important cargo at the docks." She smiled mischievously.

"Well, I just got finished moving cargo. Why can't Suki just do it?" Ty Lee wanted to say more but stopped there. She had noticed that her leader didn't do as much work as the others, but it wasn't her place to speak about it.

Takumi shook her head and poked Ty Lee's nose.

"Suki doesn't need to know about this quite yet."

"So…is it a surprise?"

"You could say that." This grabbed Ty Lee's attention. She loved surprises.

"What is it then!?" She asked in excitement. To her reply she only got another poke in the nose. "Guess that means I can't know about it yet either."

"You'll figure it out." Takumi replied, "Now come on, we can't miss the boat."

Ty Lee sighed and followed her second-in-command solemnly. No matter how much she liked surprises, she liked it more when she knew what it was.

They trekked over to the docks, where the boat had not come in yet. Ty Lee felt like giving some smart remark about how they didn't have to hurry, but figured that probably wouldn't end well.

"So…can you tell me now?" She asked, hoping the second time would be the charm. Takumi laughed.

"Be patient. Remember, curiosity killed the Cat Owl."

"…wait…it killed it?"

"It was a figure of speech." Takumi explained. Ty Lee blushed in embarrassment.

Ty Lee stared at the calm sea and saw the boat slowly sailing towards them.

"There's the boat!" She squinted her eyes to look farther, "It's rather big for a cargo ship."

"That's because its not." Ty Lee turned and stared at Takumi. She didn't return the gaze.

"Then…the cargo is…" She thought for a moment, "…a person!?" She felt more confused than ever.

"Bingo." Takumi winked.

As the boat sailed closer, Ty Lee considered who would be on the ship. Maybe it was Aang. Koko would be happy. If it was Aang, then maybe Katara would be with him. Then she wouldn't be so happy. She smiled. They were so cute together, just like Zuko and Mai.

Maybe it was Zuko and Mai. Mai had said she had planned to visit her every once and awhile, but wasn't this a little soon? She had seemed a bit worried about her. But if it was either of these possibilities, would they be coming on common passenger ships? Zuko was the Fire Lord and Aang was the Avatar after all.

Logic began to make her brain hurt, and she decided just to wait until she saw this person. It wouldn't be as fun as guessing, but it would be easier.

But wait. Hadn't Takumi said something that made it obvious who it was? Ty Lee's stomach churned, and she closed her eyes. When she opened them, the boat was close enough to see who was on board. She gulped, realizing she had been right.

"It's Sokka!"

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**Ah. Sokka has come to town (finally). This will make the story move by much faster. XD I love Ty Lokka, but with Suki and Sokka's infatuation its almost a dead fail ship...oh well. This is fanfiction after all XD**

**Thanks for reading! Odd...I didn't have a long rant anywhere in the a/n this time...I MUST BE SICK!! XD**


	6. Dealing With Sokka

**Ah. Very quick update. I am proud of my Beta. Much longer than the last one, so I hope you are satisfied. XDD This one was very fun to write, but my beta had a lot of help with the romantic scenes (I'm not good at writing thos 0.o''') Well, enjoy, and please review!**

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Ty Lee stared with her mouth agape at the ship approaching them. It couldn't be Sokka! Not now! She had just been doing so well on Kyoshi. She had started to fit in, started to feel like she belonged. Sokka couldn't come and mess that up now!

"Yeah, its Sokka." Takumi said with a smile, "Pretty nice surprise for Suki, right? She's been talking about him for a while."

Ty Lee nodded, though she didn't mean it. Pretty nice surprise for Suki indeed. But what was it for her? A nightmare! She couldn't have Sokka distracting her or creating any more rifts between her and her leader. And what would Nikumu think? She would certainly take this opportunity to jeer Ty Lee even more than usual. At least she would have Hasoka and the twins on her side.

Ty Lee watched as the ship docked. She willed with all her heart for it to turn around, or sink, or…or something! Anything to get it as far away as possible. She closed her eyes, hoping when she opened them the ship would have disappeared and Takumi would be laughing at the great practical joke she had played on Ty Lee. She had no such luck, however.

When she did open her eyes instead she was met with the sight of the young man that made her heart leap. He was wearing Earth Kingdom clothing, which clashed horrendously with the blue theme of the island. Perhaps he should have gone with his usual Water Tribe garb. His hair was pulled back in its normal fashion, leaving his handsome face visible to all. His blue eyes were intent on his workcrinkled a bit from laughing at one of the sailor's jokes. He was helping the sailors secure the ship so it would not go out with the tide. Ty Lee winced a bit at hearing his raucous laugh float across the wharf.

"Come on, Ty Lee, we have to get him to the dojo without Suki seeing." Takumi motioned Ty Lee to follow her to the docks. Ty Lee found, shockingly, that her legs did not seem to want to work. She forced them to move forward, though she herself didn't really want to go either.

Sokka looked up when they came up to him. Ty Lee could've sworn his eyes were fixed on her a bit longer than they had been on Takumi.

"Oh, hey! If it isn't my favorite warriors!" He stood up and reached out his hand, which Takumi took generously, "Takumi, right?"

"Yep. And I know you already know our newest member." Takumi released her grasp. Sokka turned toward her.

"Yeah. How's it going, Pokey?" He gave them same gesture to Ty Lee, intending her to take it. It took a moment for her to get the command from her mind to her hand, but she eventually shook Sokka's hand, a bit too firmly, too eagerly almost. She quickly let go and continued the conversation, discreetly wiping the cold sweat that had appeared from his touch on her uniform. She found herself at a loss for intelligent thought.

"Uh…okay I guess." She blushed, suddenly glad for the thick, white make-up they wore. Had he called her 'Pokey'? Was that a flirt? Or was she just reading into things too much? Takumi raised an eyebrow at this nickname as well, but quickly dismissed it, "I've finally got use to the routine around here."

"Yeah, Suki's told me its tough." Sokka replied. With that all of Ty Lee's thought's of flirting and her short daydreams of Sokka leaving Suki were crushed. She bit her lip, more angry at herself than Sokka. She shouldn't even indulge herself with thoughts. That's how she would be hurt and distracted. She just had to face the facts that Sokka was Suki's. Even if she didn't like it. There were other guys, right? …right?

"Speaking of Suki, we have to get you to the dojo soon to complete the surprise." Takumi reminded.

"So, she really doesn't know? I can't wait to see the look on her face." Sokka immeadiately broke into a wide smile.

"Me either."

"Well! Then, we better get going now!" Ty Lee interjected. She didn't like the turn the conversation was taking.

The three of them walked slowly on the beach. None of them spoke for awhile, until Takumi informed them that they were taking a shortcut through the woods.

"Suki never goes there on break, so there's less chance she'll see." She explained. The others followed without any trouble. Takumi knew the island better than the two of them, and they trusted her judgment.

Ty Lee felt the awkwardness in the air. Perhaps she shouldn't have shouted her wish to change the subject and get going. Next to her on the path Sokka sure looked a bit discomfited, thought Takumi didn't seem affected. There was an uneasy silence once more, broken only when Takumi warned them of low branches or uprooted tree roots every so often. Finally, they reached the dojo, to everyone's relief. The trip had been less than pleasant.

The entered the dojo from a back entrance, quickly greeted by Hasoka and the twins.

"Sokka!" Hasoka exclaimed, only to have Takumi shush her.

"We don't know when Suki's coming, so you have to keep it down!" She chastised. Hasoka stuck out her tongue, but when she next spoke her volume had gone down a few decibels.

"So, how was your trip? I hope the Unagi was no trouble." She asked, then whispered conspiratorially, "If he was, I would have to feed him rotten fish as punishment." Sokka laughed.

"Oh, it was fine, I guess. Actually, I didn't see the Unagi at all." The look on his face told Ty Lee that he was glad he didn't.

"That's a relief. Never know what he'll do with foreign ships he's not used to." Hasoka mimed wiping sweat off her forehead and smiled.

The twins then started up a conversation on the feast they were going to hold tonight on account of his arrival. Ling Ling looked particularly excited, though Ty Lee knew she was the worst cook out of the two of them. Before she knew it, everyone else in the dojo had formed a circle around Sokka, all wanting to talk to him. Ty Lee, on the other hand, was outside of this crowd of people. It was as if she didn't exist.

She frowned. What was so important about Sokka, anyways? The only reason they liked him was because he was hooked up with their leader. If it had just been Ty Lee's friend they wouldn't have gotten this treatment. As she was thinking, Sokka looked over one of the twin's heads at her. He looked concerned. She turned away quickly, blushing yet again, and began to act interested with the various decorative fans on the wall which she had already looked at so many times during her time on the island. When she chanced a glance back, he had redirected his attention back to the fawning girls. It was then Ty Lee realized they were missing another member other than Suki.

"Hey, where's Nikumu?" She asked.

"She's going off to get Suki," Hasoka informed plainly. Then she raised her hands to her face in horror, "And I was supposed to tell you all to get into position!! They could be here any moment now!"

"Hasoka! Why are you so absent-minded? Now…" Ying Ying began with an irritated look on her face. Her twin looked rather different.

"…the surprise could be ruined!" Unlike her sister, Ling Ling's face was a bit crumpled, and she looked like she was going to cry. Ty Lee knew she must have put a lot of work into making this surprise.

"Well, if we get into position now we can still make it work!" Hasoka said. Everyone agreed to this, and went to their positions. Except for Ty Lee and Sokka, that was. Sokka obviously hadn't had the time to be told the plans, and Ty Lee had been purposefully left in the dark to make sure the surprise was kept secret longer. They stood in the middle of the dojo as the other girls scrambled behind beds. Finally Hasoka noticed them and ran back over, "Ty Lee come with me, Sokka, go next to Takumi!"

The two of them obeyed and took their newly-appointed posts. Ty Lee crouched down behind her own bed next to Hasoka. Hasoka was holding in fits of giggles, obviously excited about Suki's arrival. Ty Lee frowned. She couldn't have cared less. Once more too much attention was brought to Sokka. And Suki. Sokka and Suki being together. Ty Lee made a face, but quickly hid it behind a fake mask of what she hoped looked like excitement.

Ty Lee heard footsteps and an anxious voice from the doorway.

"Nikumu. Stop it. I can tell when you're lying. Something's happened. What is it?" Suki interrogated. Nikumu didn't reply, but simply walked into the dojo, "Nikumu, seriously! You're scaring me…why is no one here?"

Ty Lee found it hard to suppress giggles at that comment. Suki didn't even see what was right in front of her. Hasoka counted down on her fingers, showing them to everyone. When she got to 'one', everyone stood up and shouted 'Surprise!'. Everyone except Ty Lee, that is. She slowly came up and raised her hands like the others, but obviously lacking their enthusiasm. Suki didn't notice. Her attention was completely on the only male in the area.

"Hey Suki." Sokka smiled.

"Sokka!" She ran up to her boyfriend and the two of them embraced, "What are you doing here?"

"Decided to surprise you." He smirked.

"But you said that you weren't coming for months!"

"I also said that my foot wasn't better." He pointed to his uninjured foot. Suki laughed.

"I can't believe you're really here…" Her voice was low now. Ty Lee could just see Suki's eyes roaming over his face, his neck, the small bit of muscle that peeked out of his shirt as she smoothed his tunic down. The other girls crowded around the couple. Suki didn't seem to notice and neither did _oh-so-special _Sokka.

"Want me to prove it?" He drew her closer, and Suki's lips met his as if they had planned it for years. The adoring groupies sighed and squealed at the sight. Ty Lee wanted to vomit as Suki's arms went and wrapped around his neck, Sokka's hands at her waist, but kept a painfully happy face nonetheless. Ty Lee turned her eyes away, trying to look at anything besides the happy couple.

"Okay girls, before these two eat each other lets get the food ready." Takumi called, obviously regretting spoiling the moment. She motioned for the twins to bring the food, which they did eagerly.

Ty Lee watched, eyes wide, as they brought in several trays. On the trays were bowls full of all kinds of food, some Ty Lee even couldn't recognize. It all smelled so good. And yet…Ty Lee realized with a start that she wasn't hungry. She had completely lost her appetite. She felt a ping of annoyance go through her. If it was just Ty Lee's friend they wouldn't have thrown a whole feast…

Everyone else had grabbed at the food instantly, Sokka ravenously taking his share of meat. Ty Lee simply sat on her bed, waiting for it all to be over. She knew too well that it wouldn't just end. No, Sokka was going to be here for awhile. She was going to have to learn to deal with it. Maybe she could ignore him?

Someone else sat on her bed and she turned, hoping to see Hasoka. Surely she would be there to keep her company in the midst of this chaos. But no. Ty Lee tried not to let her disappointment show. It was Ling Ling. And there was a bowl full of rice and meat in her hands.

"I happened to notice you hadn't got anything to eat…and I wondered if you wanted to try some of my curry." She held out the bowl precariously, so that the chopsticks on top looked like they would fall off. Ty Lee found it odd listening to the girl talk without her twin next to her finishing her sentences.

Ty Lee considered for a moment. She wasn't all that hungry, but after coming to the realization that she had to deal with Sokka, her hunger had started to come back, just a bit. And the curry did look good…but Ling Ling's dishes were unpredictable. She frowned unconsciously, but almost immeadiately replaced it with a smile.

"Sure, I'd love to try some." She lied, taking hold of the bowl. Ty Lee took a piece of meat in her chopsticks and slowly, almost hesitantly, brought it to her mouth. She was met with a pleasant and sweet surprise, "Mm! It's really good Ling Ling!"

When Ty Lee looked up from her bowl, however, she saw tears instead of a beaming face.

"O-Of course it is!" She muttered, the tears falling freely, smudging her make-up.

"What? Why are you crying?" Ty Lee asked frantically. She was a bit perturbed that she could barely hear her friend over the talk of the others, and the fact that the others didn't even seem to notice the sobbing girl.

"I didn't make this…Ying Ying did…" She confessed, "And I saw your reaction. Y-You were afraid of eating what I made…"

"No I wasn't!" Ty Lee found herself lying for the second time in the same minute. Ling Ling scowled, obviously seeing through her, "Okay…I kinda was…more wary than scared…" She added.

"I work so hard to be like my sister…but she's better at me in everything. Cooking, fighting, being brave…" Ling Ling finally gained control of her sobs and wiped her eyes,some of the make-up coming off completely, "Did you know we were the youngest Kyoshi Warriors ever to enter the program?"

"Really?" Ty Lee was genuinely interested. "How old were you?"

"Ten, but we weren't allowed to go on real missions until we were eleven." She held out all her fingers.

"So when did Suki enter?" Ty Lee asked.

"When she was thirteen. We joined the same year as her." This statement caught Ty Lee off guard. She had known that the twins were younger than her, but could they really only be fourteen now? And if they were fourteen now, they were thirteen when they fought in the forest for the first time…Dang…

"Wow. That must count for something." She replied, hoping the compliment would soothe Ling Ling. It didn't.

"Ying Ying was the one they wanted. I was only allowed because I was her twin..." She admitted. "I'm still not good enough to be a real Kyoshi Warrior…"

"Don't say that." Ty Lee insisted, "You're much better than all of the fighters I've been up against before. You were able to hold your own when we…Uh…me and Mai fought you in the forest. That takes a lot of skill. They wouldn't have let you stay a warrior if you were that bad."

"I guess your right…" Ling Ling smiled, then turned toward the group of people huddled around Suki and Sokka, "He's rather cute, is he not?"

"Who?" Ty Lee asked, her mood instantly darkening. She knew fully well who the girl was referring to.

"Sokka, of course!" She sighed, "But I shouldn't be thinking like that…Suki wouldn't let him go even if he wanted to…"

Ty Lee didn't answer at first. It didn't occur to her that there may have been others on the island other than herself that were attracted to Sokka. If Suki did give him up, she would have competition…wait what was she thinking!? She was going to ignore her urges to be with was going to ignore Sokka, himself. She was going to let her leader have it her way. But it was going to be hard…

No. It was going to be impossible. She had been lying to herself the whole day about Sokka. She…She loved him. And obviously he felt something about her too. Why else would he have flirted with him when he apparently still had feeling for Suki? She doubted that he actually 'loved' Suki. He was using her or something like that.

She had to know for sure. Had to know his feelings about her, about Suki, about everything. If Sokka didn't like her…then she would move on finally, like she had been telling herself. But if her hunches were correct then she couldn't ignore it. She couldn't ignore Sokka if she was right.

"Who knows?" Ty Lee mused, "Sokka can be very persuasive…"

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**Yay! I got to write a lot of Ling Ling. She's my favorite of the twins. I have an odd like...attraction (not romantic) to twins. All of the twins in all the Transformers series have been my favorites, Fred and George in Harry Potter are also my favorite, the only twins I didn't like are Lo and Li from Avatar (old twins are creepy!). So its fun to write twins!! **

**Wow...once more I barely write anything in the a/n. Something must be wrong XD Please review!**


	7. Fixing Up and Hooking Up

**Woot! Sorry for late update. But this is a goody chapter. Thank you Zutarafan4, who wrote a majority of it XD I sent her like a thousand words of a chapter and it came back over 2 thousand words XD I've been drawing a LOT lately and getting subscribers on youtube so I have not had a lot of time to write. Sorry. Please forgive me!! Okay...well, review please!**

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"Okay everyone! Do you know where you are working?" Suki called.

"Yes!" The Kyoshi Warriors plus one responded. That 'plus one' was a bit too enthusiastic in Ty Lee's mind. Ty Lee pouted next to Hasoka, folding her arms as she glared over at 'plus one's' head.

"Then let's get to it!" She folded her fan into her hand, signifying that her time to speak was done. Instantly the girls and 'plus one' grabbed tools and wood and set to work.

It had been a combined effort of Ty Lee's and Hasoka's that brought this day into motion. Ever since Ty Lee had seen the poor remains of the Kyoshi Warrior's old dormitory she had wanted to help it. And the idea of sleeping in a building that didn't smell like sweat had appealed to her. She had expressed the idea to Hasoka who also wished to have the dormitory back. So they brought the case before Suki, who took time to stop making out with Sokka to plan the whole operation.

Oyaji was going to address the village later that day to ask for any volunteers who wished to contribute. It was better to ask for outside help once they actually started making progress on the makeover. Then the spirits would be raised of the people and they would be more willing. Or, at least, that was what Oyaji said.

Ty Lee had been very excited to start when she got up that morning. With this new project meant the removal of the morning run and exercises. It wasn't that they were exhausting or physically demanding anymore. She had gotten used to it. But a break was pretty nice. Now that she was starting to do the remodeling work, however, she wasn't so excited. She was used to carrying around supplies and stuff. Not building.

She had been assigned to fixing up the window frames on the bottom floor. That was relatively easy. At least she didn't have to start fixing the roof or the ceiling. That was up to the twins, Takumi, and Hasoka. Suki was working on the door frames, while Nikumu and Sokka insulated the walls. Nikumu was only with Sokka to prevent any distraction from Suki's work.

Ty Lee made a face as she began to set the new frame where the old one used to be. She hadn't had a blasted moment to talk to Sokka about his feelings since her decision. He was always lip locked with Suki. Always. It was insane. But she had to do it soon, or Suki and her apparently attractive lips would win him over.

She readied a nail in the side to connect the frame to the wall. Very carefully, she lined the hammer with the nail. She had never hammered something before, but it couldn't be that difficult.

Seriously, though, she thought as she raised the hammer up. What did Suki have that she didn't? Suki was cute but she was cuter. Short hair is so out-of-style. And Ty Lee was a better fighter, though that could lower your chances with men. They liked being the muscle. Suki was boring to talk to. Ty Lee always brightened up conversations. And to top all of that, she knew that she had much larger…

"Ow!" She cried, dropping the hammer and nail and instantly attending to her now-throbbing hand. She had struck herself trying to think and hammer at the same time. Now her hand was red and stinging. Ty Lee shook it a bit to try to make the pain go away but it didn't work. How could she be so stupid and inattentive? She bent down and picked up the hammer again, grabbing the nail as well.

"That looked like it hurt." A voice piped up from behind. She cringed and answered without turning to look her in the face.

"What do you want, Nikumu?" Why did that arrogant jerk always have to show up at the worst times? She was always ruining everything. And it was like she lived to be a nasty person to Ty Lee. She reset the nail and lifted the hammer, swung, and missed. She frowned at the new round indent in the wood. Nikumu chuckled behind her as she swung again, this time hitting the nail only to slide off and hit the wood again, leaving a bent nail behind.

"Just wanted to check up on you. Figured you would be screwing things up by now." She sneered, "Just goes to show that Fire Nation scum are worthless."

"Shut up, and get back to work." Ty Lee fumed. She replaced the bent nail with a straight one, fitting it into the small groove she had seemed to make the one time she had hit it. She steadied the nail, trying to keep as many fingers as possible away from the path of the hammer. This time she managed to actually hit it semi-squarely. She brightened a smidge at her success.

"There was something else I wanted to mention…now what was it again?" Nikumu pressed her finger to her chin, "That was right! I left Sokka all by himself to finish our work!"

"Why is that so important?" Ty Lee mentally groaned at the mention of the Water Tribe boy.

"Well…I thought that maybe you'd want to see him. You guys are old pals from the war, right? But I noticed you hadn't been able to talk to him because of Suki. So I figured this would be a good time to talk. I could set the frame in for you since you are doing _soo_ well already."

Ty Lee dropped the tools again in surprise. She turned and saw Nikumu looking at her. Then came the real surprise. She didn't have the usual look of spite in her face. Actually, she seemed sort of… nervous.

"Okay…I know I've been real mean to you…from the moment you came here…and I'm sorry…I should've acted better…So…this is kinda…my way of asking for your forgiveness. Some time with Sokka will make up for my rudeness, right?" She couldn't look Ty Lee straight in the eyes, but stared around the demolished dormitory.

Ty Lee couldn't believe what she was hearing. Nikumu was feeling…remorse? She wanted to let Ty Lee and Sokka have time alone? This wasn't like Nikumu…and yet it seemed innocent enough. Besides, either way she would be with Sokka. She could finally ask him.

"Y-Yeah…sure it would, Nikumu." Ty Lee smiled.

"Oh! I'm so glad!" Nikumu ran up and hugged Ty Lee so hard she couldn't breathe, "I was afraid we would be enemies forever."

"Well, looks like we won't have to be now."

"Exactly. Now hurry up. I can't take your shift forever and not be noticed," She winked and picked up the tools to start working.

Ty Lee ran out of that section of the room faster than a caffeinated airbender. Sokka. Alone. She could finally ask him. Find out how he felt. Put that section of her life behind her…or extend it to something more. Everything that had been on her mind had led up to these moments she was about to experience. She couldn't mess up. She had to get this right.

There he was! Standing so close by, working diligently on fixing the wall. That was odd. Ty Lee had never seen him so intent on work like this before. His brows were furrowed in concentration and he was biting his tongue comically. And there was paint splattered all over him. She giggled. It was so like Sokka to act so silly. He didn't really mature much since the war.

She surveyed his work a bit. It looked like he and Nikumu had finished two of the walls and were now on to painting them a light green color. Sokka was in the middle of painting the wall across from the doorway.

Slowly, she crept up behind him and tapped him on the back. Immeadiately he froze and dropped everything.

"What the-?" He spun around, "Oh, it's you Ty Lee." He looked relieved.

"Hi Sokka. You need any help? Looks like Nikumu abandoned you." She figured she could lie about Nikumu like this because of their little truce. It wouldn't really look like anything bad anyways. Before he could respond she grabbed the paintbrush and began to paint over the new plaster they had added.

Sokka nodded in agreement and went to procure another paintbrush. When he returned they worked for a few minutes in complete silence. Ty Lee couldn't think of what to say. How could she bring it up? Without it being awkward, it seemed near impossible. The quiet seemed to continue forever, until Sokka finally spoke up.

"I'm sorry I haven't been able to talk to you."

Ty Lee turned and looked at him in disbelief. Did he really just say that? He had stopped painting and was staring resolutely at the wet paint. He actually had a serious face on.

"Oh no! That's okay! I mean, you've been busy! I understand completely!" Ty Lee lied. To emphasize she waved her brush which only flung paint into her hair. She grimaced.

"No, it's my fault…I've kinda been ignoring you…avoiding you." He admitted. At this he turned his head away from her.

Her heart began to beat faster. Was this really going in the direction she thought it was? Well…time to take a chance.

"Sokka…do you think I'm cute?"

The way it came out was so stupid that she wanted to go back and change it, but it was too late. She had already said it. Sokka's eyes widened as he looked back toward her.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean…do you like me?"

Another silence followed, longer and much more awkward than the first.

"I…I don't know…" He turned away again. "I mean…darn, this is so confusing!" He clutched at his head with both hands, looking up to the ceiling. He even stomped a bit. She probably would've found it funny if it wasn't her fault.

"Why is it confusing?" she asked.

He turned back towards her, lowering his hands. His expression was pained. "Because I think I actually might."

"Might what?" she searched his face with her eyes, looking for some clue. She knew she was pushing it, but…

He stepped closer to her. "Like you."

Ty Lee knew this was her chance. She grabbed a hold of his arm and pulled him close. She was expecting him to resist or something but he simply let her move him. Her arms wrapped around his neck.

"Why don't we check?" She almost whispered. Then she kissed him.

It wasn't an ordinary kiss. Nothing like the small peck she had given him the day she left for Kyoshi. There was something in this one. A spark. It felt good.

He hadn't moved right away. But now she could feel his arms slowly circling around her waist and his lips start to respond. Spirits, he was amazing. No wonder it was all Suki did with him. She pulled his ponytail out slowly, reveling in the feel of the combination of his lips and now his hair dangling in her face. She played with it absently as Sokka got more into the kiss.

"I think she went over here, Suki…" Ty Lee heard a voice in the distance. But she didn't think much of it. She was in pulled away from her mouth for half a second then started kissing around her jaw line. She shook her head, wanting those _lips_, those amazing lips… "I've found her! And…What are you doing, Ty Lee!?"

"Sokka!"

Quickly, Sokka broke away from Ty Lee and blushed, grinning a cheesy, too-big smile. Suki and Nikumu were standing in the doorway, Nikumu with a pleased look on her face. The Water Tribesman's grin slowly fell off as Suki glared at him, looking very close to tears and positively furious.

Ty Lee blushed heavily, staring at the floor. She couldn't believe she had just made out with her leader's boyfriend. She glanced up at Suki and Nikumu, doing a double-take at Nikumu's barely-there smirk. Instantly, she was livid. This had been a setup! But…how was she going to get out of this this time?

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**I only wrote 4 sentences for the kissing scene. It was the section about the spark. Everything else was Zutarafan4 XD I can't write romance like that to save my life. So glad to have her as my beta. **

**Ooh? What's gonna happen now!? Guess you;ll have to wait and see...**


	8. Caught in the Act

**:D I'm waiting for you all to hate me, because this chapter has been a long way coming...SORRY!! Please don't blame my beta! Even if she had updated, I've been writing so many Transformers oneshots that I wouldn't have had the time or motivation to do this. Now I do, and I hope to keep the updates rather steady...to a point XD **

**Well, for those who still read this, enjoy and review!**

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"Ty Lee, I can't believe you!" Suki cried, tears running down her face. Ty Lee had waited for this moment — for the blame to shift to her. Of course Suki wouldn't think this was her perfect boyfriend's fault. It was the girl-who-he-was-with's fault. Which in this case was her.

But it wasn't her fault, it was Nikumu's! She had set her up! She had enticed her to be with Sokka. She had told her that she wasn't going to tell Suki. Or at least…she had made it sound like she wouldn't tell Suki. Now that Ty Lee thought about it Nikumu had never actually said anything about that, which only made it more evil and planned out. Nikumu lied. She didn't want Ty Lee's forgiveness or friendship. She wanted blood. It was an act worthy of Azula. The acrobat mentally shuddered at the thought.

And there was the perpetrator now, standing behind Suki, a grin as large as Appa on her face. And every second it kept getting wider. Of course, if Suki turned to look at her she quickly changed it to a stern 'How dare they!' expression. She was good at sudden facial changes. It was kind of scary.

Ty Lee's anger abated when she again looked at Suki's face. Her leader's make-up was completely ruined. Guilt washed over her momentarily.

"But Suki, I didn't… I didn't mean to k…" Ty Lee cut herself off when she found herself lying. But it wasn't a lie in the same way. She had completely meant to make out with Sokka, but she hadn't meant for Suki to find out or for Suki's feelings to be hurt. Seriously, if she had known what Sokka had done during the war, she wouldn't have been surprised at this. But that's right, Sokka probably hadn't told her yet. Trying to keep up a good image, or something. Ty Lee wanted to glare at Sokka but felt it wasn't the right time. Besides… she still had some of the ecstasy left in her chest from that kiss.

"You didn't mean to what, Ty Lee? We all know how you are," Suki spat. Ouch. What was Suki insinuating about her? Whatever it was, it wasn't good, and it wasn't true.

"Suki, it wasn't her fault."

Ty Lee's eyes widened as she identified the voice that has just spoken. Sokka!? Sure enough, he walked up in between Ty Lee and Suki. But why would Sokka speak up now? And why? Unless… he had been serious about what he had said earlier… but he couldn't have been…

"What?" Suki asked as if the idea that it wasn't Ty Lee's fault was incredulous.

"It was my fault, so stop attacking Ty Lee," Sokka restated his point with a serious look on his face. It looked totally misplaced with his hair undone and paint splattered all over him. Suki stepped back as her flow of tears increased, ruining her makeup.

"What are you talking about, Sokka? She obviously seduced you! Just like she did with all the bachelors on this island! We all see how they look at her when she passes by," Suki insisted. Ty Lee frowned. Since when had any bachelors been looking at her in that way? And were there even any bachelors on Kyoshi? She had always assumed they were married because of their age.

This made one thing obvious: Suki was losing her cool and it was showing.

"No, it was my fault. I encouraged her. Not the other way around." Now it was Ty Lee's turn to be incredulous. She had encouraged him, just as Suki had said. So Sokka was lying… to save her?

Suki bit her lip.

"Sokka…you couldn't have…" Suki protested feebly. Ty Lee felt bad for Suki, but at the same time she was relieved. Her perfect little world had finally revealed its true colors, and she had to face those facts.

"Ty Lee, go outside," Sokka ordered.

"What? No, I'm not going outside!" Ty Lee exclaimed. "This is as much about me as it is about you!" She didn't want Sokka to take the blame for her. It made her feel uncomfortable. Like she was running away from her problems.

"But you don't want it to be about you, do you?" Ty Lee thought about it. He was right. She nodded. "Then go, I'll take care of it."

Ty Lee knew she had no choice but to obey. She walked out of the room, not without receiving a dirty look from Suki and a look of sadistic pleasure from Nikumu. She ignored this. Once she had left the room Suki exploded. She couldn't hear everything as she continued out of the building, but she knew that Suki was not happy with Sokka. But Ty Lee was elated. She had never expected anything like this from him. It only made her like him even more.

As soon as she left the soon-to-be renovated building there was a quiet. She couldn't hear Suki's yelling anymore. It felt nice. But what we she supposed to do now? Her only job for the day was to help renovate the dormitory. And now she really couldn't. Maybe a stroll around the village would be okay. She hadn't had much time to relax lately.

Ty Lee slowly made her way into the heart of the village, many things on her mind. What would happen now? Would Suki ever be able to talk to her again? Would she be able to work with her again? She stopped, realizing what she was thinking. Suki was the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors. She could kick her out of the team. And that wouldn't be good. This was the only place where Ty Lee felt she belonged.

"Hey, Ty Lee! Whatcha doin'!?" Ty Lee turned to see Koko running up to her with her band of followers close behind. "Is it true you are rebuilding the dormitory?"

"Yeah, how did you know?"

"We heard Oyaji talking to the village about it. It sounds exciting," she frowned, "Too bad my parents said I couldn't help. I'm too little…"

"Ha!" a voice called from behind the group of girls, "I'm allowed to help because I'm not a wimpy girl like you."

"Shut up, Ototo!" Koko shouted as the boy made his way toward her.

"Make me!" Ototo put his fingers in his mouth and pulled them to the side, making a funny face. Then he noticed Ty Lee. Instantly, he dropped his fingers and kicked at the dirt absently, "…Mom said I had to apologize for ruining your first day here… so, I'm sorry…"

"That's okay, Ototo. I've already forgiven you," Ty Lee smiled. If it wasn't for him, she would have been keeping a secret from all these people that would eventually have been found. It was better to learn about her heritage and actions at the start and not later. She figured that it would seem like a betrayal or something of the like.

"Oh well, I don't really care about your forgiveness, I only said that because Mom made me," he explained with a rotten grin on his face. Ty Lee struggled to remain liking the boy.

"Ty Lee, can't girls do anything boys can do?" Koko asked. Her groupies nodded, expressing their will to know as well.

"Well, let's think about this…" Ty Lee put her finger to her mouth, "Do you see any boys on the Kyoshi Warriors?"

"No," all the girls said in unison. Ototo remained silent.

"And we have been recognized as one of the best fighting groups in the Earth Kingdom, right?"

"Yes!"

"So what do you think?" She winked.

"Girls are _better_ than boys!" they exclaimed, squealing, and laughing, and pointing at Ototo. He stuck out his tongue and walked up to Koko.

"You only think you're so tough because you're friends with that airhead. That doesn't mean anything," he insisted, gesturing to Ty Lee. Ty Lee put her hands on her hips. How dare he call her 'airhead' again!?

"You think you're so tough because you're friends with that goof-off Sokka," Koko retorted. Ototo flushed, as did Ty Lee. She had momentarily forgotten about Sokka.

"Sokka is a brave and skillful warrior and was a critical part in ending the war!" Ototo rolled off the line like he had memorized it to use in comebacks.

"…and he has been beaten by Ty Lee on several occasions," Koko reminded him.

"Well, he beat me a few times too…" Ty Lee admitted. All the girls glared at her, though none as dark as Koko's.

"I thought you were on _our_ side, Ty Lee!" she huffed, shoving her hands on her hips.

"Hey, I never said what side I was on, I only laid down the facts," Ty Lee explained, "Girls and boys are equally good. You two should know that, especially since I think it is clear you two like each other."

There was a silence that couldn't have been cut by the strongest knife. Both Koko and Ototo blushed so hard you could barely tell that their skin wasn't always that red. Then they broke it at the same time.

"I don't like her!"

"I don't like him!"

Their combined shouts almost made Ty Lee deaf and she covered her ears.

"Okay, okay, be in denial then," she sighed, her shoulders drooping as she looked up to the sky.

"If anyone was in denial, it was me…" Ty Lee felt the hair on the back of her neck stand up.

"Sokka?" She turned to see the boy she had been talking about earlier. His hair was back in a ponytail, though very messily done. He must have done it quickly. Most of the paint had been washed up. He looked tired. Suki must have taken it out of him.

"Sokka!" Ototo exclaimed at the sight of his idol, "Who's better: boys or girls!?"

"I'd have to say girls," Sokka announced, much to the dismay of his fan.

"But…why?" Ototo pouted.

"They usually know what's right in their heart without question," Sokka smiled, looking at Ty Lee. She figured there was a deeper meaning to this answer, but she didn't feel like asking. "Can I speak to Ty Lee alone?"

"Aww…but I want to hear your stories again!" Ototo objected.

"Later, Ototo. When its darker it sets the tone better," He wiggled his fingers in a scary fashion. The girls screeched and ran off in different directions, laughing as they did. Ototo sighed and walked off, knowing he couldn't argue with Sokka.

When all of the kids had left and the street was empty, Sokka opened his mouth to speak. Too bad Ty Lee beat him to it.

"How was….Suki?" she asked warily.

"…we've decided to spend some time apart…" He replied solemnly. "But she shouldn't be angry at you anymore…"

"You broke up!?" Ty Lee exclaimed, astonished. She hadn't exactly expected something like that so soon.

"No. We are just spending some time apart," he grinned, "Kinda like a vacation I guess."

"Oh…well that's good."

"We're going to evaluate how much we value our relationship and stuff. Most of that was her idea, I didn't really understand it," he waved his hand absently, showing how much he cared. "But it will give me time to think about you."

Ty Lee froze, her heart pounding. Could this…really be happening?

"What do you mean?"

"I… I think we should start dating," he began. "Not like, seriously, just to see if it would ever work…" He shrugged.

"O-okay! If that's what you want," Ty Lee said, trying to hide all of the excitement rising inside of her.

She couldn't believe it. Finally, something seemed to be going in her favor.


	9. The Melancholy of the Unexpected Visit

**Hooray for fast betaing! Also, has any of you seen the trailer for the Avatar movie? It looks EPIC~ Though I'm really pulling out for the second one, since that will have Ty Lee :D**

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Ty Lee scrunched up her face as she held the fish as far away from her as possible. It smelled completely awful, suggesting it had been dead for quite awhile.

"Eww! Hasoka!!" She squealed, throwing it back into the basket, "You didn't tell me that would be in there!"

Hasoka shrugged. "You didn't ask."

"You still could've warned me!" She huffed, then looked at her hand, "Aw man! I got fish slime all over me!"

"Just put it in the water. It'll wash right off."

"Okay…"

Ty Lee wasn't angry at Hasoka. She was just having fun. Besides, she was in way too of a good mood to be upset for too long. All the time she was spending with Sokka was really influencing her.

It had been a few weeks since they started 'dating'. Of course, it was all held very secretly, usually involving both of them to sneak out late at night to a spot in the woods (though she had to be super careful. Nikumu almost caught her going out of the dojo once). If Suki ever found them, she would be majorly ticked. She was already majorly ticked, and Ty Lee didn't want to push it further by shoving their relationship in her face. Besides, there was something romantic about the wooded setting. Or maybe it was just euphoria after all of those sweet, extended kisses…

Ty Lee shook her head, reminding herself to remain in the present. She would see Sokka again tonight. Then she could think about stuff like that. Until then, she had to focus on the task at hand. Even though life was absolutely perfect at the moment, she still had work to do. Unfortunately.

"Seriously, what did you think I had, Ty?" Hasoka asked playfully. "You knew what we were doing today. And couldn't you smell them?"

Ty Lee had been assigned to assist Hasoka in the monthly feeding of the Unagi today, since the remodeling of the dormitory was practically finished and handled mostly by volunteers. It turned out that the elephant Koi that also lived in the bay generally ate all of the little fish in the area, and to keep the Unagi from eating the Koi someone from the island was appointed to specifically hand out the food to it, usually a Kyoshi Warrior. Hasoka had explained earlier that you had to learn certain calls to get its attention, which had been passed down from generations of previous feeders. Though, way back when, they actually fed the beast criminals and war prisoners as well as fish. She was pretty certain they didn't do that anymore. At least, Ty Lee hoped they didn't do it anymore.

To do this job they were actually allowed to wear something other than the traditional warrior garb. It wasn't anything especially extravagant: just a blue tunic and leggings. But Ty Lee had been forced to wear the same outfit for so long that any change was good. Besides, he makeup had the horrid tendency of running off with her sweat, and that was always uncomfortable, not to mention embarrassing to be seen like that.

"No…I wasn't really paying attention until I actually had it in my hand." She shivered, not wanting to touch a fish like that again, "How can you handle them like that all the time?" She shoved her dirty fingers into the bay.

"I've gotten used to it. I was a little squeamish at the start, but it really isn't that bad." She lifted another basket off of the small cart they had taken to the beach and laid it on the sand next to the other three they had already placed.

"How long have you been feeding the Unagi?" Ty Lee asked.

"Since I was…hm…seven? Eight? Somewhere around there. It was maybe two years after my parents were killed…and I don't really remember when that was. I was causing so much trouble around the island that they had to put me to work."

Ty Lee instantly felt ashamed. She hadn't meant to bring up Hasoka's tragic childhood; in fact, she almost forgot about it because of how little it was spoken of.

"Causing trouble?" She asked warily, not sure whether she should pry any more.

"Yeah. Oka, my foster mom of sorts, told me that I used to be a wild child. I stole. I got into fights. I cut myself. The only way to calm me down was to give me something to do. She said that I was like that because I was dealing with the grief…" She smiled, "But I'm over that now, so stop giving me that sad face! I don't even really remember my parents, so it doesn't matter. Oka and Otou became my parents, and then when I joined the warriors they became my sisters and cousins. If you think about it, the loss of my original family gave me a larger one."

Ty Lee understood that. Leaving behind her family, all of her sisters and her negligent parents, brought her into a completely new kin. She definitely liked it better here than at home. Here she actually felt like she belonged. Like she was loved. Sure, some of her new relatives were hard to live with, but it was a lot more improved from her old life.

Hasoka handed her one of the baskets. "Here. We need to wade up to about our waists, then we let them go. The Unagi will smell them almost immeadiately, so we have to be quick about getting out of his way."

Ty Lee frowned. "And we don't have to touch them?"

"Only if you want to." She replied, grabbing her own basket. "C'mon."

Ty Lee steadied the weight of the basket in her arms as she entered the water. She did not want the fish to fall out on her. Smelling like fish wasn't something very desirable, especially with her rendezvous with Sokka tonight. There was a chill as the water rose up to her knees. Even though she had lived her for quite a while now, she still could not get used to the unnaturally cold water of the bay. Ember Island had never been this icy.

Once her waist was covered with the frigid water the cold was almost unbearable. It was like sharp little knifes stabbing into her skin. She was surprised that the water wasn't frozen. Forced to take very rigid steps, she lifted the basket above her head to keep the smell from permeating into the currents. Hasoka was doing the same, except she wasn't walking so awkwardly. All of this experience was clearly present in her actions. It was hard for Ty Lee to imagine a little seven-year-old Hasoka doing the same thing, her head barely bobbing above the surface. Ty Lee had never had to work like that at that age.

"Okay! Now!" Hasoka commanded, tipping her basket into the water. Ty Lee followed her example, being careful not to let the fish land anywhere near her. They plopped into the clear liquid in a rapid procession.

Running out of the bay was much easier than vice versa. The water grew warmer the closer they got to the beach, and though it was still cold there was a big difference. Ty Lee could hear the Unagi break the surface to receive his food, creating a giant wave that was heading for them. She wanted to turn and watch him eat, but knew if she did she would be caught in that wave. She was wet enough as it was.

They reached the sand just in time to miss the surge of water and for Ty Lee to catch a glimpse of the Unagi. The magnificent beast splashed back into the deep waters, having eaten his fill. She sighed inwardly. It may not be the prettiest creature, but it was still amazing. Sure, she would never want to _touch_ it (it was probably a hundred times worse than a normal fish) but it was sure fun to look at. Elephant Koi, too. All of their colors were simply beautiful.

"Hey…what's that out there?" Hasoka asked, pointing out to something in the horizon. A mile or so from where the Unagi had just been was was looked like a small ship, steaming towards them. "We aren't supposed to get any cargo ships today…"

Ty Lee put her fingers around her eyes to reduce the glare from the sun reflecting off of the water and peered closer. It was too far away to see anything, really. It seemed to be too big for a cargo ship, though. And there was a lot of smoke coming from it…

Wait. Smoke…

"It's a Fire Nation ship!" She gasped, "And by the looks of it…part of the royal navy!"

"Really?" Hasoka tried to look closer as well, but obviously couldn't tell.

"Uh huh. I've ridden in ones like it a lot."

"So…what does that mean?"

Ty Lee considered this for a second. Why would a Fire Nation ship be coming to Kyoshi Island? They didn't get many ships here in the first place. A few Water Tribes coming for trade. Cargo ships, of course. The occasional vacationers from the Earth Kingdom mainland. But that was about it.

"Maybe…" She struggled to think of an answer. Then it hit her, "Mai! Mai's coming for a visit!"

She could hardly hide her excitement. Her best friend was coming! After months of separation she was going to see her again! They would have so much to catch up on. She had to know what life was like in the Fire Nation now. And about Zuko. She could tell her about Sokka, too. She didn't think she would be the kind of person to tell anyone else about him, anyways.

Hasoka looked at her a bit solemnly and nodded. "That's probably it. Let's go meet her, then. We've got nothing else to do."

As they walked over to the docks, Ty Lee couldn't help but notice Hasoka grow more and more sullen. Almost angry. Wasn't she happy for Ty Lee? She hadn't acted this way when Sokka had come to the island. Then she understood: Hasoka had become her best friend too. She might feel threatened at Mai's arrival, or fear that she would be ignored. Ty Lee wanted to tell her that she would still be her best friend as well, but didn't know how to bring it up nicely. A slip of the tongue could cause her attitude to worsen.

By the time they reached the docks the ship had already berthed, several men tying up the ship to keep it from floating away. Ty Lee felt a happy nostalgia as she saw the bright colors of the Fire Nation flag sailing above the vessel. It may not have been the best of homes, but it was her home. She missed it, even if Kyoshi Island was more pleasing to her.

Ty Lee was surprised when a dark-skinned girl clad in blue came out of the ship instead of Mai, accompanied by a young man that she had seen briefly before. She almost frowned when slowly, Mai came out behind them. She had been afraid for a moment that she had only gotten her hopes up.

Mai was in the most beautiful dress Ty Lee had ever seen her in. It was deep red, simple, but fitting Mai's style. Her hair was a smidge shorter than before, with ornamental pins holding up her buns, but other than that she hadn't changed much. She was the same-old Mai.

Ty Lee waved frantically and ran up to meet her, instantly drawing her in a huge hug from which Mai oddly didn't squirm or slink away from. Hasoka remained at the end of the dock, watching the exchange from afar.

"Mai! Oh Mai! I've missed you so much!!" She cried, dancing back and forth in her grasp.

"I've missed you too, Ty Lee." Mai said softly, giving a rare smile.

"And Katara!" Ty Lee turned to face the waterbender, "It's nice to see you too! My, you've gotten real pretty."

Katara smiled. "Thanks, Ty Lee. You too."

Ty Lee then went to look at the boy, whom she now recognized from the ceremony at the end of the war. He was taller, with darker skin, though lighter than Katara's, and long rich hair. She was almost inclined to be attracted to him, The only thing that immeadiately turned Ty Lee off, however, was a small beard and goatee on his face. She had never been a fan of facial hair.

As she continued to stare at him, she realized how uncomfortable she was making him. He shuffled his feet a bit, looking more at her nose than her eyes. A small blush appeared on his cheeks. Yet he still didn't speak up. Didn't introduce himself.

Katara noticed this and intervened. "This is Haru. He's an old friend from the war. Haru, this is Ty Lee, the girl I was telling you all about."

He nodded shyly. "Hi."

"Hi, Haru! It's very nice to meet you!" She took his hand and shook it. His blush increased dramatically.

"Ty Lee…we need to talk…" Mai began.

"Yes we do! You have to tell me all about life in the palace now! Is it better or worse? How are the people doing?" She turned to Katara as well. "And most importantly: how is Zuko? And Aang?"

Their paled faces soon told her that this was not the question to ask. They quickly answered at the same time, in the same agitated tone.

"Busy."

"Aw…that's a real shame." Ty Lee frowned, "But I guess that's what happens when you're the Avatar and the Fire Lord and-"

"Ty Lee, I didn't come here to visit." Mai announced coldly.

Ty Lee blinked. "You…you didn't…?"

"No. I need to tell you something. And the rest of the warriors and the leader of the island. You have to bring them to me. Now."

"I'm glad you could all come here. I'm afraid that what I have to tell you is of the greatest importance. Fire Lord Zuko sent me here right away as soon as we were informed of this."

Ty Lee fidgeted on the ground. All of the warriors as well as Sokka and Oyaji had come in to the dojo hear what Mai had come to say. Though, she didn't really know why Sokka had to come in the first place. He had only been an honorary Kyoshi Warrior for a short time, and he definitely wasn't a leader. She was still glad he was there. She was sure that whatever Mai was going to tell them wasn't good. 'Greatest importance' generally translated into one thing: trouble.

"You are all in a considerable amount of danger," Mai breathed in, "Ty Lee, most of all."

Ty Lee froze. She was in danger? From what? From who?

"Azula escaped from the mental hospital where she was being held."

No. No, not this. Anything but this! Ty Lee felt her heart stop beating for maybe two whole seconds. Hasoka turned to her and grabbed her hand, squeezing it for good measure. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Sokka looking at her, concerned. It still didn't get her out of the daze she had fallen into.

"Although the Fire Nation has taken extreme measures to weed out those still loyal to both her and her father's rule, it seems we overlooked a number of them. Less than a week ago she was smuggled out of the building, her nurse murdered along with several guards. They most likely fled by boat."

"How does this put us in danger? Azula should be going after Zuko, right?" Suki asked.

Mai shook her head sadly. "She seemed to have developed an obsession with Ty Lee. She would cry out her name at night…we think she may be out for revenge. And knowing these followers that have her…they'll be willing to do anything for her."

"What are you going to do about this?" Oyaji asked fearfully.

"I've enlisted the help of Katara and Haru to help guard the island, but they can't do it on their own. You need to check every ship that ports here. Any one of them could hold her." She sighed. "I would stay here and help too, but I'm needed at the Fire Nation in case she changes her mind and strikes there instead. We can never be sure what she is thinking."

Nikumu leaned over and hissed into Ty Lee's ear. "Nice going, brat. Now we could all go under because of you."

Ty Lee didn't answer. Couldn't answer. The panic and shock still held her brain in a headlock. No reasonable thought could come out. Only that Nikumu was right. This _was_ all her fault.

What had she done?


	10. Broken Mirrors Instead of Promises

**Sorry this was a bit late, I was on vacation in Chicago**

* * *

Ty Lee never liked the thought of having a bodyguard, not to mention _two_ bodyguards. But there was Katara and Haru, following her at a distance as she did her daily tasks. No one else on the island seemed to notice that she was constantly guarded. They probably just thought these were two close friends that couldn't stand being apart from her. Oyaji had thought it best not to tell them about Azula. Having the people in a frenzy would not help the situation at all.

She turned and gave a small glare in their direction. Katara was paying attention to something else and didn't catch the gesture, but Haru did. His face became downcast as he continued walking.

It wasn't that she didn't appreciate the fact that everyone was so worried about her. She just didn't need constant surveillance. She could take care of herself. She had taken down Azula on her own not so long ago, or had they all forgotten that? It was like she wasn't even a credible warrior; just a little porcelain doll that could be easily broken. She was anything but a doll.

She would rather have Hasoka watching her, or someone else she was more accustomed to. But Hasoka had over-enthusiastically volunteered to monitor the cargo ships along with Nikumu, who wasn't quite as excited.

"Dontcha worry, Ty." Hasoka had said, "I'm gonna keep you nice and safe!"

Sure, but would she be making her happy? She had already lost track of Mai, who was forced to return to the Fire Nation. What would she do without being with either of her best friends for an extended time? Well, she would see Hasoka, just not as often. And, for all she knew, Katara or Haru might have to pat her down or something before she was allowed to talk to her.

She kept on walking through the middle of the village, suddenly unaware of what she was supposed to be doing anyways. Some job, of course. But what had it been again? She shook her head and sighed. She was becoming more absent-minded by the second. Or else, more distracted.

Why shouldn't she be? Even though she could take Azula in a fight, she didn't want to. She didn't want to be pushed into another conflict with her former friend. To watch her suffer. To know that it was her fault she was like this. She would rather just let Azula kill her, or torture her, or whatever she planned to do.

Azula has been a fugitive for nearly a month now, Mai giving them this piece of news days ago. Who knew where she could be, if in fact she was coming to Kyoshi? No, she was coming here. Ty Lee was sure of it. Somewhere, deep inside, she knew.

"Ty Lee! Ty Lee!"

She was brought back to reality by Koko, who was pulling on the hem of her uniform. As usual her group of girls was right behind her.

"Oh, hi Koko." She said with a small smile. "Do you need something?"

Koko motioned for her to lean down, closer to her mouth. Ty Lee obliged, sinking down and putting her hands on her knees. She could remember wanting to speak face-to-face with older people when she was that age too. Especially since she was rather short.

Koko bent forward, cupping her hand over Ty Lee's ear. "What are you doing with that floozy?"

Ty Lee blinked, not sure who she was talking about. Then she saw Koko casually look towards Katara, a glare similar to the one Ty Lee gave earlier, if not darker.

"Showing her around the island." She lied.

"She's _already_ seen the island." Koko insisted. "Many times."

"Don't ask me. She was the one who asked me to take her-"

"Why is she here and not Aangy?" She asked, revealing her true intentions. Her groupies behind her and well in earshot nodded, expressing their will to know as well.

"Aangy- I mean Aang- is the Avatar, remember? He's off doing….Avatar-y stuff. Y'know. Saving people. Bringing world peace. Those kinda things."

"But he could be doing that here!" Koko protested.

"Well, I suppose so…but…"

She was relieved when suddenly Hasoka appeared, interrupting the conversation. Once again she was Ty Lee's savior of sorts.

The look on her face told her this interruption wasn't a good one.

"Ty Lee!! Come quick!!" She cried, panting. "The dormitory!"

Ty Lee let Hasoka grab hold of her arm and drag her toward the dormitory, not sure what all of the hubbub was about. Her bodyguards were on her tail. She could hear their hastened footsteps close behind. It wasn't until they passed taller buildings that she saw the smoke rising in the air.

She had become rather accustomed to fire. It was something in the Fire Nation that happened rather often. Whether it just is a small flame on the wick of a candle to a burning heat in the large hearths. Ty Lee actually enjoyed the heat that often caressed her face when she stood in front of a bonfire.

But this was different. This was the scary kind of fire, blazing like crazy, eating away at the dormitory they had worked so hard to fix. Ty Lee cried out in horror when she realized what was happening. With a crack she could hear sections of the second floor collapse inside. No! She had put so much time and energy into this! How could this be happening!?

For the first time she was grateful for having Katara and Haru as her minders. Instantly, Katara whipped out her supply of water, carefully working to extinguish the flames without burning herself. Haru was doing a similar job, killing flares by sprinkling earth over them, taking away their supply of oxygen.

Ty Lee watched, mesmerized, as their hands moved gracefully and with beautiful precision. She had always been enamored with benders. How they displayed such control over things that they didn't even have to touch. Without them here, now, the dormitory would no doubt have been completely consumed.

"How did this happen?" Ty Lee asked.

"Dunno. I was at the port and then I smelled the smoke." Hasoka said.

A new voice piped up. "I can guess who did it."

It was Nikumu. She had her arms crossed, looking oddly happy for witnessing the near-destruction of her future home.

"We don't want to hear anything from you." Hasoka snapped.

"You just don't want to hear the truth."

Ty Lee gulped, knowing exactly what she was referring to. But this was just a fire. Anyone could have set it. It didn't have to be a bender. Didn't have to be _that_ bender.

Soon the flames were out. It didn't change the pitiful appearance of the dormitory. It was burnt and charred black, most of the work they had done reversed. They would have to work hard to fix that. Her spirits dampened. But at least it wasn't irreversible. It would just take longer for her to sleep in a real building instead of the dojo.

Katara ran over, holding a piece of scorched wood in her hand.

"I found this by the side of it." She said, "I…I think it explains a lot…"

On the wood was burned a message. Ty Lee stepped back on reading it.

I'm coming for you, Ty Lee.

Princess Azula was definitely on Kyoshi Island.

* * *

Ty Lee stepped carefully into the forest, feeling the mossy ground with her bare feet. She hadn't had time to slip on her shoes. That was okay; she liked the softness of the moss and wet grass. It somewhat soothed the sores on her ankles because of her constant work. Refreshing.

She was glad to be out of the sight of Katara or Haru. They had been especially annoying ever since the fire. They no longer stayed behind her at a distance: they were right at her shoulders. At one point she could feel their breath on the back of her neck. She needed her personal space! They were going to suffocate her if they stayed that close! Then Azula wouldn't need to kill her. She'd already be dead.

She fumbled with her hair as she grew nearer to the clearing in the middle of the woods. She wanted to look slightly presentable, even though Sokka was always aware that she slipped out of the dojo after pretending to be asleep. Her bangs tended to mat when she lay down. Fortunately, today they seemed to be cooperative as she attempted to fix them up.

She smiled as she saw Sokka, sitting on their special rock in the clearing. Waiting for her. Slowly she sat on the rock and scooted over.

"Hey, cutie."

He smiled at her. "Hey." He wrapped his arms around her waist, burying his face into her neck. "So what was my Pokey up to today?" He gave a chaste peck to that one spot right by her jaw and Ty Lee promptly forgot all about Katara and Haru's smothering, along with everything else in her day.

"Well… um… I fed the Unagi, a… a bit ago." Her face was burning. Why did it always have to burn and turn such a clashing red color? Even though Sokka had told her that he found it cute, the color itself was still embarrassing.

Sokka chuckled and nuzzled her. "You told me that last night, remember?"

"Oh, yeah…" She tried to laugh, but the heat seemed to have spread to her neck and constricted her airways. Her hands gripped his shirt, grateful for his strength that was alone keeping her sitting up. Oh, the effects that his slightest touch had on her were ridiculous.

"I don't care," he whispered, and then he was kissing her lips. Oh, Agni, how she loved his kisses…

Her hands snaked up to cradle his face and his arms pulled tighter around her thin waist. Then, they were in her hair. And hers were in his. How was it that she felt that, even as close as they were, she still wasn't close enough?

They continued like that for a bit, or at least for as long as one can when not being able to breathe, then Ty Lee drew back, chest heaving. Why did this always have to be so exhausting? Her heart wanted to continue, but her lungs were desperate for a break. She leaned back on the rock, staring up at the stars.

"Look, Sokka!" She said wistfully, "A full moon!"

He didn't reply, looking sadly up at the anomaly she was pointing at. Ty Lee had always been taught to despise the moon, considering it was the source of the Water Tribe's power and they, being fire's polar opposite, were the Fire Nation's biggest yet quietest threat. Of course, Ty Lee was never one for going with the crowd. The full moon was so beautiful, silver and shining. Stars twinkled next to it, giving the appearance of crying.

"… I can't do this anymore…" Sokka muttered.

"What?"

He stood up. "I… I can't do this anymore."

"What do you mean?" Ty Lee asked.

"You. I can't… be with you anymore." He answered.

Ty Lee felt her heart skip a beat.

"You can't mean that!" She cried, her face flushing in anger and surprise and sadness and confusion and every other feeling she was feeling at that moment. But most of all, betrayal. He had told her he loved her. On several occasions. Had that all been a lie!?

"I'm sorry. I have to do this…" He started to walk away, back through the woods. Back to his bed. She jumped to her feet, almost screaming in frustration.

"So you can go back to Suki!?" She shouted. "Why!? Because she's prettier? She's smarter? She's not a circus freak!?"

He stopped and turned around. "It's not because of her."

"Then why!? Why!?" She bawled, "At least tell me why you lied to me!"

She felt like going up and slapping him. More than once. Many times. Enough to make his face red and bleeding. Did he think he could just toy with her? That she was just a stupid girl that he could use? She was a Kyoshi Warrior, and she would not let him do this to her!

"I… I need to keep you safe…" He said softly, "And I never lied to you…I do love you…"

"Safe? How does this keep me safe!?"

"Well… I talked about it with Katara and…"

"You told her about me!? You promised never to…" She stopped, not wanting to go off topic. She would remind him of this later. "Of course Katara told you to break up with me! She would rather you be with Suki! I saw how happy she was when she saw you two together!"

"That's not it! Would you just calm down and listen to me!?" He shouted.

Several birds that had previously been sleeping were sent into the air by the sound, screeching and complaining the whole way. She wouldn't be surprised if it woke up someone in the village. Ty Lee winced, tears springing up in her eyes. She had never seen him get this angry before. Not with anyone. Especially not with her.

"I'm doing this for you, Ty Lee… everyone I've ever gotten involved with has always gotten really hurt. And now with Azula here…I can't let anything happen to you. You have to understand this!" He explained.

"Suki went to the Boiling Rock. Big whoop. That was partly because of me, remember? Hardly any real danger, not even life-threatening. I can take care of-"

"Yue died."

Ty Lee blinked. "What?"

"Yue… I met her at the North Pole… we were really close… and she died…" He looked up distantly at the moon and sighed, "If I caused that to happen again… to watch a girl I cared that much about die again… it would be unbearable."

Ty Lee's breath caught in her throat. She felt like she was going to throw up, either because of Sokka's confession or still because he was leaving her

"B-But…"

"I'm sorry, Ty Lee. This is for the best."

And with that, he walked out of the woods, not looking back. She watched him leave, finding herself slumping over on the rock. She felt faint. Then, overcome with emotions, she let it all out.

She cried herself to sleep that night.


	11. If You Listen Closely

**Another chapter. And a lot of twin love XD I love twins, and I've not gotten a lot of chances to write the two in here. They'll get a LOT more important, I'll tell you that.**

* * *

Ty Lee glared at the merchant's booth in front of her with utmost disgust.

It wasn't that she had any particular distaste for this booth. She was actually well acquainted with the owner and often helped him carry cargo and such. He was a nice man who had a family to look after and she was glad to help him. His children were absolutely adorable too. She was pretty certain that one of his daughters was a part of Koko's little troop.

No. It was the burning message on the side of it that caused her disapproval.

Katara and Haru were already at work putting the fire out. It wasn't as big as many of the others she had seen recently; just a relatively small flare rather than the ravenous ones that ate away at buildings. This proved one thing: Azula wasn't trying to be destructive. She was trying to tell them something. Something about Ty Lee. She knew she should be scared for her life, but found that her old friend's threats didn't frighten her. It just brought up bad memories.

Ty Lee figured she should be used to this by now. Ever since the fire at the dormitory, this became a weekly thing. On the first day of every week a new note appeared along with smoke from an inflamed building. Always slightly different, but it still bore the same meaning. She was surprised no one on the island had caught on that Azula was most likely here. They probably thought it was a troublemaking youth or something of the sorts instead of a very powerful and very dangerous firebender.

Katara had confirmed that this had to be Azula's work, or at least of a bender as strong as her. If one without bending abilities was just setting a building on fire they wouldn't have been able to be so precise. And writing with flames? Impossible without the talent of firebending. As far as they knew, no other firebenders were on the island or showed interest in the location. So it had to be her. It had to be her. No matter how much everyone wished it was someone else, it had to be her.

Oddly enough, Ty Lee could've cared less about the death threats right now. Sure, this man's booth almost burned to the ground, but nothing Azula had set on fire had been completely destroyed so far. Her heart was hurting more than anything.

Sokka had recently announced that he and Suki were an item again. Very publically in the dojo. With kisses. Lots and lots of kisses. Beautiful, lengthy kisses. Not so long ago that had been her in his arms, feeling his lips. She had been the one he had loved. The anger surged inside of her, mixed with pain and treachery. He had said he was doing this to protect her, but she was now convinced he had made up that story. At least he hadn't gotten back together with her leader the day after he broke up with Ty Lee. That would've made it hurt worse.

"You ready?" Hasoka asked, handing her a paintbrush.

Ty Lee didn't respond, staring at the tool in her hand. She had learned about Sokka's so-called 'feelings' for her while painting. Had he really just used her? Was it all a lie? She didn't know what to believe anymore.

She breathed in, pushing her struggles aside. "Where do we start?"

"Lemme see…probably where it says 'I see you, Ty Lee'." Hasoka said with a grin. "But that's just my guess."

Ty Lee couldn't help but smiling back. Both she and Hasoka were the only one it seemed who weren't taking this whole Azula thing seriously. Probably because Hasoka was the only one who understood that Ty Lee could protect herself and she wasn't in any real danger. It was nice to still have her around during her current depression, even if her best friend didn't know about her fling with Sokka.

Haru stepped back, the fire extinguished. He was sweating, and he pulled up a bit of his shirt to wipe it off his face. Ty Lee found herself blushing as she caught sight of the muscles hidden underneath the cloth. He was in better shape than she thought. He had appeared slightly weak, but now he seemed so strong. If only he didn't have that facial hair. Maybe then…

No! No rebound romance for her! She wouldn't be used again. Wouldn't get hurt again. She was already accused of being too boy-crazy. She wasn't going to let the charges against her be proved correct. Ty Lee was perfectly able of controlling herself around boys. Perfectly able.

Now that the fire was out, they had a new job. Repair the damage as much as possible. Painting over the scorched areas was the only way they could do it so far without bringing much attention to the messages scrawled over the burn marks. And it was a lot more fun than replacing the wood. Less time consuming too. They also got to wear something other than their usual uniforms since it was messy. Ty Lee loved the feeling of the softer tunics they had on. She hadn't gotten to wear it since feeding the Unagi. No make-up either.

"Am I holding this right?"

It was Ling Ling. She had decided to join them today on account of Ying Ying being off with the others going offshore on a cargo ship, watching for any unusual activity suggesting that Azula was hanging out far off in the sea. And at the moment she was handling the brush from its bristles, staring at it with as much confusion as one could express. Her face was scrunched up so tight it looked like it would stay that way.

"No, no. Like this!" Hasoka demonstrated. Ling Ling's cheeks burned bright red and she rotated the brush so that she was doing it correctly.

"S-Sorry… I knew I've painted before but…" she frowned. "My brain feels all muddled right now…"

"Like how?" Ty Lee asked, concerned. Ling Ling tended to exaggerate about ailments and scary things, but she really appeared to be sick.

"I… I don't know…" she said softly. She looked really frightened, completely in the dark about what was making her feel bad.

"I do," Hasoka interjected. "Its Ying Ying."

"Huh?" Ty Lee didn't understand how Hasoka had come up with that conclusion.

"She's never been off the island without you, has she?"

Ling Ling shook her head. "No, we usually go together."

"Then that's it!" Hasoka exclaimed triumphantly. "It's that weird twin thingy that makes you guys hear each other's thoughts. It also makes it hard for you to be apart for long distances and long periods of time. I also heard you can feel each other's pain and stuff."

"Are you sure?" Ty Lee asked. She had never heard of anything like this before.

"Positive. I knew some twins who said that stuff happened to them."

"What? But… there are no other twins on Kyoshi Island… we were celebrated as the first pair in almost fifty years…" Ling Ling objected.

"I was talking about before I was on the island," Hasoka replied stoically. "Oh, yeah. And they said they knew some twins who actually _died_ after being separated for too long and-"

"Okay! I think we've heard enough stories for today!" Ty Lee interrupted. She could see Ling Ling's face paling rapidly, her eyes shrinking smaller than pinpoints. The poor girl already got scared too easily. Though Ty Lee wondered what she was more scared about: herself dying, her sister dying, or both of them dying and never being able to see each other again. She knew that a twin's bond was one of the strongest in the world.

"Let's get started then," Ling Ling offered, the color slowly coming back to her skin.

As they began laying the new coat of paint, Ty Lee noticed Katara and Haru standing at a distance, keeping a look-out of the area. She had let them know that she had needed space to breathe, and they had agreed to it unless an immediate danger appeared. Like that would really happen. But she was relieved that they actually wanted her to be comfortable. She had been afraid they were too concerned about her safety to think of anything else.

Ty Lee found herself watching Haru again. His eyes were so gentle and yet sharp. Not as piercing as Sokka's, but that made them less likely to hurt her. She was well aware the duller the knife the smaller the wound. But no. She wasn't going to initiate anything with Haru. A relationship with her bodyguard? Those never worked out. Especially after a bad one with someone else. Besides, hadn't she told herself not to think like that earlier?

Maybe everyone else was right. Maybe she _was_ boy-crazy.

Hasoka was applying the paint neatly and smooth. Ling Ling was brushing wildly, missing the wood several times and hitting herself with paint instead. Ty Lee hadn't started, watching as the hostile note slowly disappeared behind the cover. If only Azula could just disappear like that too. It would make everything a lot less stressed around here.

"Haven't you noticed something odd, Ty?" Hasoka asked, making up for the sudden lack of conversation, it seemed.

"Like what?" Ty Lee frowned.

"Like she isn't painting?" Ling Ling suggested.

"No, no, I'm talking about Azula. She seems to know her way around here pretty well." Hasoka explained. "I mean, how does she strike and then slip away without anyone of us seeing her?"

"What are you suggesting?" Ty Lee asked, suddenly intrigued.

"Maybe…" she lowered her voice, "…maybe someone's helping her."

"We already know that," Ling Ling reminded. "That's how she escaped."

Her eyes narrowed. "Maybe someone from the island is helping her."

It was quiet as they all realized what Hasoka was insinuating. Ty Lee did admit it was strange that Azula hadn't been spotted yet, especially in an unfamiliar place that had to be hard to navigate… but really? Who would be helping her? There wasn't anyone who supported the Fire Nation on the island. Or anyone who particularly hated her.

Wait a minute…

"Nikumu!" she realized aloud. "D'ya think it could be Nikumu!?"

Nikumu sure hated her enough. She made sure to remind her of this almost daily. Ever since they first met in prison she had hated her. No. Even before that. The day they had fought in the woods, when she was against the warriors. No doubt that was the start of her animosity. And a loathing that had lasted for so long could make someone do something as rash as this.

"Dunno… maybe…" Hasoka muttered. Then her eyes widened. "Wait! She did go away from the docks for a bit some time before the first attack… she might have been helping her then!"

"I don't know… Nikumu really isn't that…" Ling Ling began.

Ty Lee ignored her. "Are you positive she went away?"

"Cross my heart and hope to die," she promised, doing the appropriate motions for the oath.

This was astonishing. Nikumu was trying to kill her? But it made sense. Practically everything the evil girl said to her was a death threat. No one else would believe her, though. Takumi would say she was paranoid or Suki would tell her she was trying to get her rival in trouble. How could she get them to really consider her claim?

"We need more evidence than that," Ty Lee informed.

"I know," Hasoka said. "But I promise I'll help you get it. We need to stop her before she does anything stupid… er."

Ty Lee nodded, filled with a new initiative. She could catch Nikumu, then get her to tell them where Azula was, and then get her off the island. Her life could be normal again! The thought of it made her almost squeal with joy. And getting Nikumu in prison for a long time didn't sound too bad either.

"Okay. The investigation starts now."

* * *

Ty Lee stood outside of the dojo, looking sadly at the sunset. Usually it made her happy. She loved the brilliant display of pinks and oranges in the night sky. All of her favorite colors wishing her a good night. But this time it just made her more depressed. On a normal occasion, she would be meeting with Sokka tonight.

It was stupid to think that standing here would make him want to see her at their special spot, but that was her momentum anyways. He was with Suki again. Happily with Suki. Showing off once more how many times they could kiss in public. Revolting. Absolutely revolting. Why was he doing this to her!? Didn't he know it was tearing her up on the inside?

But of course, she tried to keep a giddy disposition on the surface. She couldn't let anyone see that she was upset and put two and two together. It was rather suspicious that she was overly content while Sokka and Suki weren't together after the kissing scandal and now that they were together again she was depressed. She didn't know if anybody else other than those present actually knew about her first kiss with Sokka, though, but she was sure they could have figured this out.

"Hey."

Ty Lee almost jumped, startled to hear anything except her own thoughts. It was a masculine voice. Her hopes soared. Sokka? Was he really coming?

Of course not. It was Haru, walking up towards her from the path to the village.

"Oh… hi…" She said, trying not to show her disappointment.

"Are… are you okay?" He asked hesitantly. She could already see the sweat beading on his brow, even with the low light. She liked the way he got all uncomfortable around her.

"Yeah. Just needed some air."

"Oh… okay…" Haru tried to look like he was interested in staring at the sunset, but he was failing miserably. Ever two seconds he would sneak another glance at her, then quickly go back to be unnoticed.

"Y'know…" Ty Lee mused. "You're kinda cute…"

She hadn't exactly meant for it to come out like that. Not making it sound like she was that interested in him. She didn't want to be interested in him. It was clear that he was interested in her, though. The whole sentence had been an accident, saying her thoughts aloud before thinking about what it could mean. She really had to work on controlling that.

His face was completely flushed, and she couldn't tell whether her confession had stirred confidence in him or made him even more uneasy. She considered what she could say to tip him off that she wasn't that attracted to him. That she wasn't ready for another relationship.

"But…" she began, "I really hate that moustache."

Then, to avoid embarrassment and seeing his reaction, she quickly ran back inside the dojo, closing the door behind her.


	12. On the Shore

Everyone was surprised the next day when Haru appeared with a freshly shaven face. Everyone except Ty Lee, that was.

"Oh, Haru! Why'd you do it?" Hasoka asked. She didn't seem upset about the change. Just curious.

He shrugged. "It was itchy."

Oh, that was such a bad lie and Ty Lee knew it. The sudden need to shave his moustache was definitely because of her comment last night — as if his constant looking at her didn't prove that. He was looking for her approval, no doubt. She just smiled warmly, giving an almost imperceptible nod. Yes. He looked so much better with clean features. It wouldn't scratch her own skin so much when she kissed him either…

She stopped and shook herself, remembering that she wasn't supposed to be thinking about him like that. Not yet. And especially not now.

Hasoka giggled and turned to Ty Lee. "See? Toldja I could get more than two words out of him."

"I never said that you couldn't," Ty Lee replied.

She noticed that everyone seemed overly enamored with Haru's stoic nature. She had seen the twins whisper excitedly to themselves too after Haru had spoken. Small flecks of blush had appeared on both of their cheeks. What was it with silent men that made them so attractive? Sokka had the same effect on the two of them, but he was almost the complete opposite. He was confident and outgoing, while Haru was shy and sensitive. Maybe the twins were boy-crazy too.

Ty Lee stretched out on her bed and sighed. This had been their first day off since she had been on the island. It felt good just to relax, not to constantly be thinking about what task she had to do and how fast she could get it done so that she could be finished early. And sleeping in was always a good thing. How long had she been waking up at the crack of dawn? That full night of rest had really reenergized her. Not that she needed anymore energy.

Turned out the only time they had breaks like this was during festivals and holidays. Tonight was the celebration of Avatar Kyoshi's birthday. There was going to be a big feast and dancing and stuff. Takumi had even said that some of the villagers were going to reenact the story of Kyoshi during the dinner. It sounded like a lot of fun. Ty Lee had never seen what parties were like in the Earth Kingdom before. Fire Nation ones were okay, but you weren't allowed to dance there.

Until then, all the warriors were allowed to do whatever they wanted. All of the shops were closed, so they couldn't do any work. That was fine with Ty Lee. But now with all that freedom, she had no idea what to do. She began to absently braid her hair, considering all of the possibilities of making this day the best day ever. Everyone else was just hanging at the dojo, including Haru and Sokka, since they were all fully dressed.

"Agni… it's hot…" Takumi waved her hand under her chin. "When will the stupid weather cool down again? It's fall now! Summer needs to go away…"

Ty Lee hadn't paid attention to the heat until that moment. Takumi was right, it was abnormally warm today. In fact, it had been rather hot lately. It was a weird kind of hot, too. Like the heat was coming up from the earth. Though, today was the hottest day so far. And they were still inside. What would it be like with the sun beating down on them? The temperature would definitely increase dramatically then.

"I got it!" Ying Ying exclaimed.

"We should go to the beach!" Ling Ling explained for her sister, when it seemed that the entire dojo was giving them confused looks.

Katara, who had been sitting quietly in a chair by the door, was instantly on her feet. "Swimming!?"

"Or we could just stand there and _look_ at the water," Hasoka teased playfully. Katara grew red at the outburst, but her enthusiasm didn't die.

"Swimming sounds great! Doesn't it?" she asked, looking for support.

Ty Lee nodded. Today had to be the perfect day to spend in the water or lying on the sand. She needed to work on her tan. Her skin was already naturally pale, being from the Fire Nation, but with the colder months coming, the tint would become whiter. If she got really dark today, she should be set for the rest of the year. Being pale wasn't bad, but she tended to get sickly and pasty without enough sun. And the makeup they wore seemed to block the rays when she worked outside.

"Can we? Can we?" Hasoka asked Suki imploringly.

"What are you doing asking me? I can't tell you what you can or can't do," Suki replied with a frown. Katara looked like she was going to cheer, but she held it in pretty well.

Hasoka quickly went up to Haru and Sokka, pushing both of them towards the door. "Out! We need to change, and so do you!"

"I don't really feel like swimming today," Sokka said as he was forced out of dojo. Haru didn't object, though, which Ty Lee was thankful for.

"…I think I'll stay here with Sokka," Suki informed them.

Typical. She had become very clingy to her boyfriend lately. Probably because she didn't want to lose him again, but it seemed kinda childish. Even her big hazel eyes recently gained a lost puppy-like quality to them. On the bright side, she had become a whole lot nicer to Ty Lee since they hooked back up. Not that she was ever really mean to her, but she had definitely ignored and used a gruff tone with her after the kiss.

"And I'm just gonna read," Takumi said.

Nikumu was sitting on her bed, but she didn't say anything to affirm or deny her will to come along. She didn't even appear to be slightly interested in anything they were saying. This meant she wasn't coming. But it also aroused Ty Lee's suspicions. If she wasn't going to go to the beach, what would she be doing? Helping Azula, perhaps? Ty Lee hadn't gotten many opportunities to investigate anything about her suspect, but this was a good start. If something happened while they were out, Nikumu better have a good alibi.

"Oh, boo. You guys are all party-poopers," Hasoka said sticking out her tongue. "Do you really want to sit and bore yourself until the festival tonight?"

"I'm actually readin' up on the history of Avatar Kyoshi. I wanna see if the play's gonna be accurate or not," Takumi explained. "It's the first year they're doin' it… so I have no idea what to expect."

"Why wouldn't it be accurate?" Ty Lee asked.

Katara answered with a dark look. "Performers like to over exaggerate," the waterbender grimaced.

Suki nodded in agreement, and Ty Lee wondered what horrible experience the two of them had had with actors. Ty Lee loved plays, and the ones put on in the Fire Nation had always been superb. She had missed the most recent production, though, on account of her being on the run with Azula and Mai after the Avatar. Actually, now that she thought about it, the play would've been showing while she was in prison. She wished she had known what it had been about.

"Everyone else coming, then?" Hasoka asked.

"Of course—"

"—we love the beach!" the twins exclaimed.

"And I've never actually played on this one before," Ty Lee added.

"Played?" Nikumu sneered. It was the first sign of interest she had shown in the whole conversation.

"Yeah, you know… making sandcastles… pretending you're a fish… that kinda thing," Ty Lee clarified.

Nikumu smirked, then shifted her position, lying down on her bed with her eyes closed. "'That kinda thing' is for kids. You need to learn to grow out of stuff like that."

Ty Lee glared, almost ready to slap the girl, but holding herself back the best she could. Why did Nikumu have to be so mean? Hasoka gave her a look, as if telling her to wait. Put up with Nikumu's actions for now. They would get her eventually. The acrobat fumed as she pulled out her swimsuit. Who would be smirking then?

They all seemed to change in what seemed to be record time. Ty Lee knew it had to be faster than she had ever gotten in a swimsuit before. Though this wouldn't have been her choice of swimwear back at the Fire Nation. It covered a lot more skin that her old bikini did, but she had to admit she still looked great in it. Though the skin-coverage was a good thing and she knew it. Even though the beach was not likely to have any guys on it like Ember Island had, there was still the chance of a boy – or a man – coming by and seeing her. This kind of outfit would let them know the kind of girl she was. Or… wanted to be.

"Let's go!" Katara cried, leading the group out of the dojo and down the path to the water. Ty Lee hadn't seen her this happy during her stay on the island.

On the way to the beach, Haru caught up with them. Ty Lee did everything she could not to stare at his bare chest. She had already seen it before. It wasn't like it was anything new. The twins, however, showed no sign of any self-restraint. Their faces were redder than tomatoes, and they giggled like little schoolgirls.

Ty Lee had to remind herself that that was exactly what they were. With Ying Ying's intelligence and maturity, it was hard to remember that they were the youngest members of the warriors. This kind of behavior was normal.

Finally they reached the bay. Everyone dropped their bags and towels on the sand. Katara immediately raced to the water, her hair flying behind her as she embraced the incoming wave. This was her natural element. Even if Ty Lee hadn't known she was a waterbender, it was pretty obvious.

Ty Lee and Hasoka hit the water next. It felt so good to be wet and refreshed. Like there were absolutely no cares in the world. They were all just normal girls again, having fun. There was no danger on the island anymore. Everything was peaceful and calm. Something about being in the bay did feel strange though, and Ty Lee couldn't quite place it.

Ling Ling splashed over to them, a frown plastered on her face. It almost looked fake, like she was wearing a mask. Ling Ling rarely was angry.

"Hey guys, can I play with you?" she asked. It made Ty Lee think about her first day of school during recess when someone didn't know any of the other kids.

"Sure," Ty Lee replied. "Where's Ying Ying?"

Maybe she shouldn't have asked that. Ling Ling looked like she was on the verge of tears or a scream of rage.

"She's… on the beach," the girl glowered.

Ty Lee turned to look. Sure enough, there was Ying Ying, and she saw exactly why Ling Ling was so angry at her. She was sitting next to Haru, seemingly deep in conversation. Ty Lee was almost inclined to be jealous too, but knew that was the last thing to be now.

"Just ignore her," Hasoka said. "Here, I know a game we can play! One of us says something underwater, and everyone else has to guess what their saying!"

Ty Lee volunteered to go first. They all dived under the waves, and Ty Lee opened her mouth to say something. She had decided on the phrase, "Happy Birthday Avatar Kyoshi!", but stopped mid-sentence. She finally realized what felt so funny about the water. She quickly returned to the surface, taking a big gasp of air as she did.

"What was that? It sounded like you didn't finish," Ling Ling said after both her and Hasoka broke the top.

"The water. It's warm," Ty Lee said.

"Hm… not really…" Hasoka replied.

"Yes, it is. Usually it's absolutely freezing and it takes me a whole minute to get used to it, but now it's really warm. Almost hot!"

"I guess it's _kinda_ warm…" Ling Ling admitted.

"I think you two are imagining things," Hasoka announced. "Or else the heat's gotten to your heads. Now, c'mon! Let's try to actually…"

She trailed off, looking at something on the beach. Ty Lee followed her gaze and saw Takumi standing on the sand, looking at them. This wouldn't usually be so uncommon, until she noticed the look on her face.

Grave.

Ty Lee sighed and sank down under the water. Another bearer of bad news.


	13. Playing Sherlock

**Sorry for the long lapse D: My beta just got her Microsoft Word uploaded on her new laptop so she just got to it. I promise I'll work hard to update regularly after this but I will be a little busy until next month.**

* * *

The sun beat down on her back as Ty Lee continued to walk forward. She was so tired. Practically exhausted. She hadn't gotten much rest the day before and she definitely didn't have the fun she was supposed to. She had spent the entirety of the festival worrying about what had happened. Then the nightmares kept her from sleeping.

For this, she blamed Hasoka. She was constantly telling her the story about the man-eating dragon that lived in Mount Hono'o. The one that lured in children by singing sweet songs and once they entered the volcano they never escaped. Ty Lee knew that it wasn't true. Dragons didn't exist anymore. But now that she was actually going to visit the farming settlement that lived next to the volcano, she wasn't sure what to believe. What if there really was a dragon there, waiting to eat her?

She had bigger problems to worry about. Mainly Azula. Takumi had received a messenger hawk from the farmers inland telling them of the princess' latest strike. She had burned down a barn. Nothing really unusual, even if she didn't leave a message like she often did. What was abnormal was that someone had been _inside_ of the barn when it had happened, and he was really hurt. The note with the hawk hadn't divulged much, but they all knew that they had to go check it out.

Ty Lee was an obvious choice, which meant Haru and Katara had to come too. It was also a bit of an adventure for her, since she had never been inland before (though the thoughts of the dragon were now making this more suspenseful than she wanted it to be). Hasoka had volunteered to come as well, but Suki opted to send Ying Ying instead, since she knew the trail better.

_"That's okay,"_ Hasoka had assured, _"I'll keep a good eye on Nikumu while you're gone."_

Ty Lee could tell, however, that her friend was rather ticked at staying behind. It wasn't completely noticeable, but she was definitely upset at not being picked. Most likely because she wanted to help Ty Lee find out more proof for Nikumu's involvement. But Ty Lee thought this would be better for them to get clues anyways.

The terrain here was so much different than near the bay. It was rockier, less trees, and a lot of up-hill climbing. Of course, there was the huge forest that they just passed through, but beyond that it looked like a big boring hike. Ty Lee sighed as she continued forward.

Ying Ying, however, looked absolutely ecstatic, breathing in the fresh morning air like she went out trekking like this every day. Haru wasn't too winded either, but Katara shared her fatigue. They were both sweating like crazy and had both had their share of complaining, though Katara did it more subtly than her. Ty Lee wondered if being a waterbender made it easier for you to sweat. She had heard it made them more susceptible to cry at times.

"Half an hour or so and we should be there," Ying Ying announced.

"Thank goodness…" Ty Lee groaned. "I think my feet are going to fall off."

"I thought you would've worked up all those muscles by now."

"I thought I had, too!"

"Maybe… we should take a break…" Katara said between ragged breaths.

"That sounds good," Haru agreed.

Ying Ying pouted. "But we'll never make it in time then! Did you forget that we have a casualty here?"

"He died!" Ty Lee asked, horrified.

"No. A casualty is anyone who is injured, dead, or missing," Katara explained as she put down her pack she had been carrying, showing her intent of stopping. "But they have to have someone tending to him, right? Or else they would've asked for help instead of just reporting the incident."

"That's true…" Ying Ying admitted. "But…"

"And if we take a break now, I'm sure they won't complain the rest of the way," Haru said. "Right, you two?"

"Right!" they both asserted at the same time.

"Okay then. Only fifteen minutes though. We won't be too off track then."

Ty Lee sat down so fast that she almost bounced back up off of the ground. It felt nice to give her body some rest as it ached from the morning's journey. And to think that they still had more to go, then they would have to take the same road _back_. This was something she was not looking forward to. Haru sat over to the side, occupied with something on the ground, and it took a lot of self-control not to stare at him.

Instead she brought her attention to Ying Ying, who was playing vaguely with her fingers. It wasn't like she was even looking at them, more like looking through them at something beyond in the dirt.

"Hey, Ying Ying. You okay?" Ty Lee asked, since no one else seemed to notice. Haru was still paying attention to the ground and Katara had taken out a canteen, filling her mouth with water.

"Hm? Oh, yeah. I'm fine." The uncertainty in her voice suggested otherwise.

"Is… Ling Ling okay?"

The question took her by surprise and she nodded forcefully. "She was a little teary… but we need to get over this. This… thing."

"Your bond?"

"Yeah. That."

"But its sounds so wonderful! Why would you want to get rid of it?"

"It's a distraction. We can't do anything properly unless we are in a certain distance from each other," she informed. "How are we supposed to be good warriors in all situations if something like that is holding us back?"

Ty Lee didn't know what to say.

"Anyways," Ying Ying went on, "This will help us learn. These short times away are getting us ready for when we'll be separated for long times."

"Though she's hardly safe with Nikumu there…" Ty Lee froze and tried to force the words back into her mouth. It didn't work.

"Nikumu?" Ying Ying frowned. "Oh, you mean that weird theory you have."

"How do you know?"

"Ling Ling was there when you thought it up, remember? It's impossible to keep secrets from a twin. Another thing that makes it annoying," she shook her head. "But really, now, the thought of Nikumu helping Azula is crazy. She's really a nice girl, you know."

Ty Lee blinked, wondering if this was backwards day or something of the sort. "Nikumu? Nice?"

"We actually used to be better friends before… our little skirmish in the woods. She's just really protective of Suki, that's all. And seeing as you inadvertently put her in danger… and how you don't really get along…"

"Me and Suki get along fine!" Ty Lee lied. Ying Ying didn't look convinced, but she continued.

"Well, Nikumu just wants to keep you in line, that's all. She actually doesn't speak horribly of you when you aren't around. Says you're a much better warrior than she'll ever be."

_Yeah, right_. Nikumu complimenting her was about as common as the unnaturally warm water in the bay. She never spoke to her or about her without the poison slipping into her tone, attacking her at every instant. Ying Ying was probably just defending her, since they 'used to be better friends before.' Or she knows what Nikumu is doing and is trying to lead Ty Lee off her trail!

Okay, that was practically impossible, but Ty Lee wasn't ready to be convinced of quite anything just yet. Instead of asking about more on the matter directly, she decided to beat around the bush for more information.

"You know a lot more about the warriors than I do. Is there ever a time when killing is acceptable?" Ty Lee asked. Nikumu followed most of the unwritten rules to the letter, so Ty Lee wanted to know what to expect if she was helping Azula (which she most likely was).

"Well… you aren't _supposed_ to…" Ying Ying admitted, "But there was one time recently when someone died during a mission. It's the only one I can think of off the top of my head."

"What happened?"

"It was the previous team of warriors, all of whom are retired by now. There had been word of a pair of Fire Nation assassins living on a small island colony nearby, posing as an Earth Kingdom family. They were sent to investigate, much like we are doing. When they arrived, the assassins knew they were caught, and during the interrogation they tried to run…" She trailed off.

"And? And what?" Ty Lee inquired, completely intrigued.

"They jumped off a cliff before the warriors could get them to say a word."

Ty Lee frowned. She knew that policy. 'It is better to live with honor than to live at all.' It was something everyone in the Fire Nation was taught. Encouraged, even. She had heard many similar tales, though they usually ended with the people engulfing themselves in flames or sticking themselves through with swords. There aren't too many cliffs in the country for them to jump off of.

At the same time she was relieved. The warriors hadn't purposefully killed them. They were willing to arrest them peacefully. Hopefully Nikumu would do the same.

"That's so sad…" she murmured.

"It is. I remember when they came back and announced it, too. Well, faintly. I was only four, but I remember the warriors talking to a crowd, and everyone shaking their heads sadly. Ling Ling and I pretended to be sad with them, but we didn't understand at all."

"Okay! I'm ready to hit the road again!" Katara declared, grabbing her pack and straightening up.

"But it hasn't even been fifteen minutes!" Ty Lee protested.

"It'll make the trip faster. C'mon Haru!"

Haru didn't move, continuing to stare at the ground. Ty Lee hadn't seen such concentration in his eyes.

"What's wrong?" She asked, walking toward him.

"Vibrations…" he muttered, "Probably nothing…"

He shook his head and got up with the rest of them, rubbing his hands together to get the dust off. Vibrations? Could he feel them through his bending? What did that mean anyways? Ty Lee had never understood physics.

They quickly got back on the pace, Ty Lee's muscles starting to cramp already. This was going to be an awful trek. If she even could make it through. She wouldn't be surprised if she died before they reached their destination.

Haru passed by with Katara, brushing her shoulder as she did. As Ty Lee watched him go, Ying Ying whispered into her ear.

"He's been asking a _lot_ about you."

Ty Lee's face remained red for the rest of the outing.


	14. Putting the Pieces Together

**Sorry this took a bit longer again. I'm writing them all in advance and the next chapter is already sent out to my beta. Also: a word of advice. Please don't review and only say something along the lines of 'update soon plz great story'. I'm fine with knowing that you want me to update but it feels like your demanding me and makes me a bit stubborn to update quickly. Instead, maybe you could say that you would like me to update and also something you liked about the chapter or something you didn't like. Sorry if that seems like I'm getting bossy or something, but it really gets annoying when thats all I get day in and day out.**

* * *

Ty Lee chewed on her rice, contemplating. Already she was preparing another bite for her mouth, but knew it was unladylike to just shove it in now. She had to wait until she was done with her first portion before going on. It was something that she had been trained well in, being the daughter of a nobleman and all. Funny, since she used to despise her upbringing. No matter how much trouble it had given her when she was younger, now she was ready to go into the world with appropriate manners.

"Well?" Ling Ling asked anxiously. "How is it!"

She gave a thumbs up, swallowing. "Great, Ling Ling. It's perfectly sticky and sweet! You've really gotten it down."

"Oh that's awesome!" the twin beamed. "I worked so hard on that!"

And that she had. The rice was steamed to perfection, not a burnt grain in sight. For once Ty Lee was craving more of the food she had cooked. She had been her test subject for awhile, trying all of the meals she created. It had been a little painful at times with all of the screw-ups and inedible concoctions, but Ty Lee knew she had to do this for her friend, and because no one else was willing. Not even Ying Ying.

She brought the hot bite of rice to her mouth, savoring the tantalizing flavor. Had Ling Ling used soy? Or was it ginger? Maybe a bit of both? Whatever it was, it was really good. Before she realized what she was doing another bite made her way into her cheeks. And another. She quickly swallowed, knowing she would've gotten a big reprimanding if she had done that back at home.

But this was her home now. And no one was going to tell her how to eat.

"I can tell. But maybe you should try to make other things too, other than just rice."

"I know. I'm just starting with the basics. I'm hoping to go on to a simple curry dish next. And if you want it to be especially spicy I can do that. I know how the Fire Nation likes their hot food."

"Actually, I like it to be more sweet than hot," Ty Lee informed, taking another bite. She could tolerate the spicy food her homeland was accustomed to, but only because the smoky burning flavor had been ingrained into her palette. After eating practically burnt turkey chicken for dinner she would always look forward to the sugary cake afterwards.

"Oh! Oh! I know how to do that, too!" she replied in a sing-song voice.

"Nice! I can't wait to taste it."

"Soon I'll be good enough to cook with my sister," she explained excitedly, then lowered her voice. "Well… at least that'll be _one_ thing we both can do well."

"Hey, cheer up!" Ty Lee said, rubbing Ling Ling's head. "Remember what I told you?"

"'Never stop smiling'."

"Exactly! As long as you do that, you'll always reach your goals. Always," she insisted.

"Really?"

Ty Lee forced a smile, something that often happened when she lied. "Really."

"Thank you so much, Ty! I don't know what I'd do without you. Especially since Ying Ying's been…" she stopped. "Whoops! …wasn't supposed to say that…"

There was an awkward silence as Ling Ling stared at her hands, her face red. Ty Lee put down her bowl on her bed, watching the twin in concern. From the other side of the room, Ying Ying looked up, alerted through their bond about where the conversation had led. Everyone else was still deep in conversation, the discomfort only obvious to the three of them. They all just looked at each other for about half a minute, turning from one person to the other.

Ty Lee faltered, trying to think of what to say. She thought she had an idea of what Ling Ling was going to say, considering what she had learned from Ying Ying on the way to the inland. The older twin was trying to sever her bond with the younger, for the sake of doing their job easier. From what she could tell, the feelings about this weren't mutual. But what could she say to try to make it better? She had no idea what it was like to go through this.

"I need to get some fresh air," Ling Ling announced monotonously, standing up and leaving the dojo before Ty Lee could get a word out. At the same time Ying Ying returned to her food, no longer interested in what had just happened.

Ty Lee leaned back a bit, grabbing her bowl and eating some more. She hated it when she wasn't able to help others. She had spent so much of her life causing pain and ruin to anybody and everybody. Now that she was a Kyoshi Warrior she wanted to change that, to work for the good of the people around her and not for the bad. Usually she was able to get it done, but in situations like this she felt like a dead weight. Not good for anything other than taking up space. And considering her intelligence, that's probably what she really was.

Nobody important.

Nobody special.

Just there to steal some air and sunshine from other people before dying.

"Hey, Miss Frowney-face. What's the big problem?" A pair of hands suddenly came at her cheeks, forcing them up in a smile. "There! That's more like it!"

"Hasoka! What are you doing!" she exclaimed, pushing away her friend's prying fingers.

"'Never stop smiling', right?" Hasoka replied. "Y'need to start living up to your own advice, there."

She sat down next to her, using her chopsticks to grab a bit of Ty Lee's rice. Well, try to, anyways. Ty Lee quickly pulled the bowl protectively to her side, not ready to share quite yet. She pushed a big portion into her mouth, grinning and making satisfied noises to Hasoka's chagrin. The other girl pouted, then broke out into a grin as well.

"Never thought I'd see you so excited over Ling Ling's cooking."

"It's really good!" Ty Lee insisted, now offering the bowl for Hasoka to sample. She took a small bit of the breakfast meal and cautiously brought it to her mouth.

"So," she said in between chewing, "What's with the frown, anyways?"

"Sorry. I was just thinking, really."

"About…?"

"Uh… nothing…"

"Fine. Don't tell me," Hasoka shrugged, retrieving a bigger collection of rice than before. "I've got something better for you to think about, anyways."

"What?" Ty Lee asked, interested.

She looked around to make sure no one else was paying too much attention to them, then whispered, "I know how we can finally catch Nikumu."

That's what she'd been waiting for. Wide-eyed, Ty Lee nodded enthusiastically, giving her permission to elaborate.

"Y'know that today's Fall Cleaning, right?"

She nodded again. Fall Cleaning was like Spring Cleaning except in the fall, which made it easy for Ty Lee to understand. Apparently the dojo got so dirty that they had to clean it up twice a year. Washing the floors and waxing them. Fixing the roof. Applying new coats of paint when needed. It was a lot of hard work, but if they all did it together it would be done quickly.

"Well, we usually get rid of trash and stuff we find around the dojo today as well. Which would mean it would be the perfect time to get rid of something that you wouldn't want anyone else to find, if you know what I mean."

Ty Lee knew exactly what she meant. "So what will we do?"

Hasoka smiled. "Don't worry. I've got a plan."

* * *

Ty Lee kept her breathing shallow, waiting until every voice died out to loosen up. All of the other warriors had gone down to the village to get the supplies for Fall Cleaning. But not her. She had to stay here and check out Nikumu's belongings. Find the one thing that the traitor didn't want her to find. The one thing that linked her to Azula and all the trouble she had been causing on the island.

The plan was rather simple, yet ingenious at the same time. Ty Lee stayed behind while Hasoka kept Nikumu in particular busy looking for some 'lost supplies' by the docks. If anyone else happened to come up to the dojo, then they would be witnesses of the evidence they were about to procure. They would be convinced, as Ty Lee always had been, of Nikumu's treachery. It was so perfect. She could barely believe that it was finally going to happen!

When the voices of her fellow warriors disappeared down the hill she took a deep breath. Hopefully nobody would notice her absence too early and come back before she found the evidence. Having a rival – even more than that; enemy – snooping through the rival's things was just a tiny bit conspicuous. Then the blame might fall on Ty Lee, and she would end up right back where everything started: in jail, with the trust and loyalty of her friends shattered. That was the last thing she wanted.

"So… what are we doing here?"

Ty Lee almost screamed, but large hands hurriedly covered her mouth, practically smothering her. She tried to defend herself from her assailant, but the lack of oxygen was making her weak. The only thing she could do was forcefully breathe out of her nose and stare at the hand that was over her.

Wait…

She recognized that skin tone

"Whoa… whoa! Sorry! Don't scream!" Haru pleaded. "I didn't mean to scare you!"

Ty Lee calmed down, but only for a moment. Now her heart was pounding for completely different reasons. His fingers… they were so soft. She would've expected them to be rough and dry from all of his affiliation to the earth, but they were smooth and fine to the touch. And against her lips so gently… she could feel the warm blush envelope her cheeks as the world seemed to melt around her. Her legs swayed under her, and she prayed urgently that she wouldn't start sweating.

"…are you good now?" he asked.

She nodded. Absently, she noted again the softness when the movement moved her lips against his fingers. Her blush increased.

"Okay. Please don't scream."

Slowly he released his hold of her mouth, and she secretly wished he hadn't. She never knew an earthbender could be so gentle and yet firm. She had always heard that they were tough and worn from all of their work with rocks and such. Even Toph's feet and hands had seemed dirty and blistered. But not Haru's. She wanted to feel his skin again, let him brush her lips and shut her up.

"Why are you here?" she asked in a hushed tone, still startled from his sudden appearance.

"I could feel that someone was in here… and so… decided to check it out," he explained in a mumble. His face grew red as well, as if he realized what he had just done. She wasn't sure if he had ever gotten that close to a girl before, the way he acted. She gave a reassuring smile.

Man, he just kept getting cuter by the second.

"Through your earthbending, like Toph?"

"Yeah, she taught me. I'm not the best at it… but I can 'see' things that are near me… I guess…" Haru replied. "I didn't know it was you, though. I can only 'see' that it's a person or a chair or a bag or whatever it is. Any other details about the thing I 'see', like hair and faces, are left out."

It was strange. Haru always was a little shy and not much of a talker. But when he was around her… it was like he felt more comfortable, but still uncomfortable in the same way. He had to be comfortable because he definitely talked to her more than anyone else on the island. But he also had to be uncomfortable because he was always blushing and speaking softly with some hesitation and tripping over words. As far as she knew, that was a good sign.

"That's still pretty impressive. Not many benders can do it."

"I guess…" he straightened up. "And you?"

"Hm?"

"Why are you here?"

Everything around her grew hot. The plan! How could she have forgotten about the plan! Why did Haru have to come along now of all times! She put her hand to her face and sighed, trying not to look directly at him. That, and to find out what she was going to tell him. Would it be okay if he knew? He could be her witness… of sorts. And surely he would trust her. He _had_ to trust her.

Otherwise nothing would work between them.

"Uh…" she muttered, twisting her finger up one of her naturally wavy bangs. "Well… here. Follow me."

She walked over to Nikumu's area which was stuck in the corner of the dojo, Haru following uncertainly behind. Her bag was partly open, an extra change of clothes hanging messily out of the side. Ty Lee swallowed, suddenly unsure about this whole thing. What if she didn't find anything? What if Nikumu wasn't the traitor? Ying Ying had defended her so strongly the other day. What if she was right? And Haru was right here. Watching her snoop through someone else's belongings with no goal achieved wouldn't make a good impression.

Yet she found herself unconsciously kneeling down next to the bag, her trembling hands unfolding the rest of the flaps. Nikumu had to be the traitor. She just had to. If she wasn't then Ty Lee would have no leads on who was helping Azula. She wouldn't know who it was who was trying to hurt her, making her life more complicated. The one who had inadvertently destroyed her relationship with Sokka (though that didn't seem so bad now. It still hurt, though).

"What are you doing?" Haru asked.

Ty Lee forced her eyes shut as the contents of the bag were exposed. She didn't want to see it. Didn't want to know her failure. She just wanted to hide and wait until this whole thing was over. Azula would leave on her own and everything would be peachy again. But no. Instead she was here, invading someone's privacy. She bit her lip so hard that it drew blood.

"…what's that?"

Ty Lee's eyes flew open. The first thing she noticed was the massive amount of disheveled items about Nikumu's bag.

Then she saw the scroll with the Fire Nation seal on it, partially hidden under a cream top.

"…Ty Lee?" Haru asked again.

Her breath caught in her throat. There it was. What she had finally been looking for.

Evidence.

"This is Nikumu's bag," she said faintly. "And this…" She pointed at the scroll in almost disbelief. She never really thought that she was actually going to find anything. This was unbelievable!

"You're saying that this is Nikumu's?" he carefully picked up the item in question. "So that means…"

"Open it."

He did so. The seal had already been broken, meaning it had been read before. And since it had been hiding in her bag… that could only mean one thing. This was for real. Nikumu had been keeping it a secret.

She was the traitor.

They quickly read through the scroll, Ty Lee's eyes widening even larger after every word. It revealed so much. Everything made more sense. There was no way around it. No loopholes. Nothing. Ty Lee was practically hyperventilating in all of the discovery and shock. But then again, she shouldn't be shocked, right? It had been her theory all along.

The scroll read, Haru rolled it back up. "We have to go tell Suki."


	15. Cause and Effect

Ty Lee figured she should be happy. On cloud nine. The top of the world. Everything she had worked so hard for had finally paid off. Nikumu was in the small prison on Kyoshi Island, soon to be moved to Ba Sing Se for a proper trial, where she would be indelibly locked up for her crimes against the nation. Ty Lee had been right all along, even when it seemed no one else believed her. She would be free of this curse that had been thrust at her for these months. No longer would she have to deal with all this craziness.

So why was it that she felt so unsatisfied?

It probably had to do with the initial arrest itself. When everyone had come back to the dojo they had presented the evidence to Suki, Haru acting as her alibi. He had been 'seeing' her for a long time through his bending, making it impossible for her to have planted the scroll for her own gain. Both she and Katara confirmed that the writing was Azula's, even if it was messier than usual and many of the sentences didn't make sense. It had been like that ever since… well, she had lost it. The seal was authentic too. But what made this so incriminating was that every word of it was addressed to Nikumu, commending her for her work in helping her.

Takumi had dragged her out of the dojo, screaming and crying. Begging Suki to believe her. That she was innocent. The cries still echoed in Ty Lee's mind, taunting her. Why would someone break down like that? She knew Nikumu was a good actor; that stunt in the dormitory wasn't so easily forgotten. But this time it was so genuine. Like she was truly in pain. That she had been betrayed by her friends.

"_I'll get you, Ty Lee. __I'll get you__ if it's the last thing I do!"_

Ty Lee shuddered, the memories so vivid and horrifying. The rain pounded lightly against the roof, bringing her slightly back to reality. Nikumu was out of the picture, yes. Serving the time she deserved, since she had to be the traitor. Had to. Ty Lee couldn't let a little performance create doubts in her mind about what she was so convinced of.

Unfortunately, Azula was not.

They had yet to find her, especially since Nikumu wouldn't spill anything about her whereabouts, denying that she knew about it. So she was still out there, waiting to strike again. By now she ought to be rather familiar with the island; she had been there for quite awhile. Maybe she didn't need anyone (Nikumu) to show her around anymore. Maybe she could cause mischief all by herself.

The most unnerving part about this, though, was that she _hadn't_ struck yet. No sign of her or anythingshe had done since the arrest. The whole island was quiet. Too quiet. Ty Lee didn't like it one bit. No one else seemed too worried though. With the traitor out of the way, it was like everything was normal again. Her instincts told her it was far from that.

A roll of thunder tore the sky apart overhead, and Ling Ling squeaked in fear, pulling her blankets further over her head.

"Its fine, Ling Ling," Katara assured. "It's not a big storm. I can already feel it passing by."

"…when will it go away…?" she mumbled.

"Y'can tell how close a storm is by how many seconds are between a lightning strike and thunder. The number of seconds corresponds with the number of miles," Takumi explained, not even looking up from the scroll she was reading by candlelight.

Lightning flashed outside, illuminating the inside of the dojo with a blinding white light.

"…O-okay…" Ling Ling said, dropping the blanket, "…one…"

Thunder soon followed, and the blanket quickly found its way back around the girl.

"Guess that means its close, huh?" Hasoka asked.

Ty Lee nodded. "It's probably on top of us by now."

"Great," Ling Ling huffed from underneath her protective layer. "Now I'm never going to get any sleep."

"It's not even near time for bed," Hasoka reminded. Ling Ling revealed her head, pouting.

"She's afraid that Katara is lying to her," Ying Ying informed from her own bed. "That the storm isn't going to leave so quickly."

"Am not!"

"Ling, I can feel your…"

"…uncertainty? I thought you didn't want to do that anymore," she frowned. "I thought you wanted to stop feeling my thoughts."

Ying Ying didn't reply, suddenly intrigued by the steady flow of raindrops hitting against the window. Everyone else remained quiet as well, knowing it was best not to go down this path again. Ty Lee remembered what happened last time they talked too much about this whole 'destroying the twin bond' thing. Both of the twins had gotten a little sick, even though Ying Ying was actually for the idea of getting rid of the bond. It was a strange thing, their connection. Ty Lee still couldn't understand why Ying Ying wanted it gone.

Pounding on the door to the dojo caught everyone's attention. Before they could answer it was violently thrown open, a flash of lightning revealing the face of the visitor. His matted hair and clothes were sopping wet, a trail of water dripping behind him as he entered the premises. Ty Lee was surprised that he didn't trip on the way in.

"Ototo!" She cried, her greeting quickly drowned out by another peel of thunder. "What are you doing here?"

The young boy bent over, apparently catching his breath. Had he run all the way here? In the rain? What could possibly be so important? She couldn't even imagine what could be so important that she would risk getting her hair soaked in the downpour outside. And she had a _lot_ of things to be worried about and a _lot_ of things that could somehow become that important. Ototo didn't have it as bad as her. As he raised his face, pasty white with fear and exhaustion, a chill ran down her spine. Whatever this was, it couldn't be good.

"…h-help…! I… need help!" he gasped.

Suki was immediately kneeling at his side, ready to do her duty. "What do you need help with, Ototo?" she asked calmly. As calmly as possible.

"…Koko! She's out there… all out there and the… and the rain and… lightning…" Ototo tried to explain, though it only came out as hysterics.

Ty Lee gave a concerned glance to Hasoka and Ling Ling at about the same time. Both returned her gaze, though they seemed as helpless as her.

"Ototo. Please calm down," Takumi said, rising from her bed to join her leader, adopting her authoritative persona as she did. "You need to tell us where Koko is. If you don't we can't help her."

His eyes widened and he attempted to slow his breathing. "The forest. I dared her to go in the forest to try and find the dragon from the volcano. It's supposed to come out during storms. I… I didn't think she would actually do it! It was just a dare! But she hasn't come back since the rain started and…"

He bit his lip, as if it was taking everything in him not to break down and start crying in front of all these girls. Suki put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"Don't worry. We'll find her." She turned to the rest of the warriors. "All right! We need to start a full search of the forest! She couldn't have gotten far… we only need a small team in this weather."

"I'll go," Takumi said.

Ty Lee fiddled with her fingers, contemplating whether she should volunteer or not. She wanted to help Koko. Just the thought of the little girl out there all alone in this storm made her anxious to find her. But at the same time she wasn't sure what good she would be. She hadn't been on the island long enough to know the forest well. She would be lost very, very quickly. Hasoka started to raise her hand, but someone else beat her to it. Someone quite unexpected.

"Me, too," Ling Ling announced, throwing off her blanket.

Ty Lee couldn't believe it. She let her mouth hang open in a gape for several seconds.

"But Ling Ling!" Ying Ying frowned. "You hate thunder storms."

"It'll be over soon, right, Katara?" the younger twin asked. Katara nodded. "Besides, I can find my way in the forest blindfolded."

Ying Ying looked like she was about to say something, but stopped before it could come out. Whatever she would say wouldn't be anything her twin didn't already know. There was no way to talk her out of it. Ling Ling stood up and walked over to join Takumi, a strange sense of confidence emanating from her. A very unnatural sense of confidence. She had to be faking it.

"Okay then," Suki nodded. "If you aren't back in two hours I'm sending in back-up."

"It won't take us that long," Takumi assured.

"You can count on us!" Ling Ling said, saluting like Hasoka often did.

"Alright."

Ty Lee watched as they walked out the door, Ling Ling visibly shuddering as soon as the rain hit her skin, and then again when a pair of lightning and thunder rang out. She hoped they would find Koko soon. She couldn't think of what would happen if they didn't. Many things could go wrong in the forest during a storm. A fire could break out. A tree could fall over and hit her. She could catch a cold and not get back in time to be treated. Or worse. Something called 'hypothermia'.

Thinking about that reminded her of the very wet child who was already found and in their care.

"Here, Ototo," Ty Lee grabbed the blanket Ling Ling had discarded, wrapping it around the shivering boy. She rubbed the corners about his hair and clothes, getting rid of as much water as possible. Katara could've probably just bent it out, but she didn't want to trouble the waterbender. Ototo glared softly up at her, showing his annoyance and embarrassment at being babied, but his gratefulness for it at the same time. She knew she wasn't going to get a 'thank you' from him, but this was good enough.

"Get him closer to the candle," Suki commanded. "I'll start up a real fire while you're at it."

She dragged the fire pit over to the center, then meandered over to the other side of the dojo to get some wood. Ying Ying went over to help, while Ty Lee led Ototo over to Takumi's bed with the candle. The boy stared at the single flame blankly, the light flickering across his damp cheeks in the darkness. She couldn't tell if it was from the rain water or from a stray tear that had escaped from his eyes.

"…they'll find her…right?" he asked quietly.

"Of course," Ty Lee said, trying her best to sound as confident as Ling Ling had looked.

"Because… because if they don't…" his face crumpled. "I never told her… but she was… she was my best friend."

Ty Lee took a sharp breath, knowing she couldn't lose it in front of him. Not right now. It wouldn't help at all. But she understood what he was going through. It had happened like this so many times before. With Mai it had turned out okay. But with Azula…

Slowly, she took hold of his hand. He turned and looked at her, his eyes wavering in fear and insecurity. At a moment like this, they needed each other. More than both of them would ever realize.

"I know," she said, her voice shaking. "I know."

Some warmth from nearby alerted them to the completion of the fire, and Ototo walked over to it, his fingers slipping from her grasp. Although it was so fast, she could've sworn that he gave her a tight squeeze before leaving to warm up. She smiled. Maybe she was finally getting through to this kid after all. Maybe he wouldn't have to pretend he hated her all the time.

Hasoka was by the fire as well, rubbing her hands in front of the embers. "Rain really makes it cold around here."

"Uh-huh," Ty Lee agreed, her composure gradually returning.

"So…uh…" her friend grinned playfully. "What's up between you and Haru?"

Ty Lee was in debt to the dark corners of the room which effectively hid her blush.

"Nothing!"

"He sure likes to talk a lot about you."

"…he does?"

"He does," Ying Ying asserted. "Though not always directly."

Ty Lee wasn't sure whether that was a good or bad thing. Even Katara, who had been so quiet up to this point, nodded in agreement. What, had they all been keeping track of how many times he had spoken of her!

"Though… it's funny…" Hasoka paused as if pondering what to say next. "For awhile… I thought you were interested in someone else."

She shot a discreet look toward Suki, which fortunately no one else caught. Ty Lee could feel the burn of embarrassment grow up to her forehead and spread down to her neck. Did Hasoka know about her and Sokka? Well… about what they had been? If she knew earlier she had done a good job of hiding it. And why bring it up now? Or was she just fishing for information, trying to prove a theory or something?

However awkward this conversation starter was, it did give Ty Lee a chance to think. Think about her current predicament. Her conflicted emotions. There was Sokka, yes. She had actually had a relationship with him. She knew a bit more about him. But then there was also Haru. Both had obvious levels of attraction. Both showed interest in her. But… they were different. Different people. Different way of life. Different emotions attached to them.

She almost wondered if going through the whole Sokka ordeal was necessary for her. Necessary for her to learn about boys and such. When she had been with Sokka she had always felt a rush. A high. Like everything was perfect in the world as long as they were together. Like every new kiss would solve all her problems. They had rarely talked. Rarely had a real conversation.

Haru liked to talk. They had talked a lot about earthbending when they went out to the inland, talked about their life at home, what it had been like before they had been involved in the war, et cetera. They had learned so much about each other in a short time. And then when they had discovered the evidence together… she hadn't been concerned about whether he would kiss her or not (though to be honest the thought of it wasn't that bad). She had just wanted to be with him.

And from what everyone was telling her, he wanted to be with her.

Both of them cared for her. But only one was willing to go on that next emotional level. Sokka had already given that piece of his heart to Suki, and she was beginning to understand it now. He couldn't share it with two girls. Haru, on the other hand, was ready to devote himself to her.

The only problem was she wasn't sure if she was ready.

"I'm not interested in anyone right now," Ty Lee said. "It's not the right time."

Hasoka stared at her and then shrugged. "Okay. Didn't realize they had a certain time for that kinda stuff, but… okay."

Ty Lee laughed, "It's complicated."

For a second they just stood there in silence, listening as yet another thunderclap erupted in the sky. The sheer force of it was enough to deafen everyone in the room. It sounded angrier than usual, like the storm was growing in strength. She was about to ask Katara about it, but she didn't have the opportunity.

It was then that Ying Ying collapsed.

It happened so quickly that no one reacted correctly. They rushed over to support her seconds later than needed. The only one who didn't come to help was Ototo, and from his panicked expression it looked like it didn't matter. Her breaths came out in labored pants, the pupils of her eyes dilating rapidly. She pressed her hand to her side, soft moans escaping from her lips. It was as if she were unable to make any intelligible words. Katara was over by her supplies, reaching frantically for something.

"Get her on a bed. Now!" she ordered, grabbing several bottles and pouches.

They worked fast, carefully lifting her up and laying her on her bed. She wouldn't stop clutching her side, like she was in an immense amount of pain. But how did that happen? They had all been there. Ying Ying hadn't been attacked. They would've seen it. A wave of terror washed over Ty Lee as she stood by the bed, completely helpless.

"It burns… it burns…!" she screamed, trying to roll over. Hasoka and Suki pushed against her, keeping her from falling off of the bed. "…Ling …it burns!"

Ty Lee froze as she came to a horrifying conclusion.

Ling Ling was hurt.


End file.
